Wake Me Up Inside
by mugu
Summary: If you had the chance to change the future, would you take it? Even if that meant making a new life for yourself and keeping everything a secret? "Sensei?" "I promise Naru, this time it will be different." eventual Kakashi/femNaruto, Time-travel
1. Prologue

**Notes of the releaser of this story:** Hello everybody. It has been long since I released something and this story, I am ashamed to admit **is not mine** but from an author called **RayneXHatake** who renamed himself into **SimplyUnsolvedMystery** (Actually I do not know about the person gender but let just say he is a man). The author pretty much deleted everything on his account on and did not leave any traces behind.

Now the question: Why would I bother to reupload a story that has been erased. Truthfully, it could be considered as a steal but it is not because when the Author deleted everything and did not let us the possibility to recontact him, I consider he surrendered his rights about the same stories he wrote. If this act is not really respectful of the author, the removal of this same story is even less respectable to the thousands of readers who followed his story. If this rip off, to say it blatantly, would make him give out an answer (per se to ask me to remove this story from the website), then it would be perfect and I would actually remove all the content excerpt for the prologue to let people know that this story exists. The story may be not great, not perfect, but it is still pleasurable to read despite all its flaws.

To conclude, I wish you a good read.

 **Summary:** If you had the chance to change the future, would you take it? Even if that meant making a new life for yourself and keeping everything a secret? "Sensei?" "I promise Naru, this time it will be different." eventual Kakashi/femNaruto, Time-travel

* * *

 **Prologue**

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

Have you ever stared into the face of death and sneered or looked over the edge of a cliff and realized the enemies are upon you and there is no escape?

I stand upon that very cliff and look out over the destruction of the once beautiful Konoha. The buildings are in ruins and the once mighty trees are nothing but hollow logs. The prestigious Hokage Mountain is now nothing but rubble, the faces of the Hokages destroyed by the flick of a tail from one of Sasuke's snake summons. The village that I had been born and raised in and fought for was gone forever, because of my ex-student. I would cry if I had tears to shed or the energy to shed them.

The enemies are upon us and the flames are licking our faces, yet I do not fear death. I know tonight I will die defending what is left of my home because of the symbol upon my forehead and the tattoo on my arm.

I looked towards my partner and only remaining student, Naru. I have never been more proud of her as I was at this moment. She was no longer the naive little girl that first came onto Team 7 screaming she was going to be Hokage. She had grown into a capable ninja who was respected throughout the shinobi nations. I look at her now and see the exhaustion, the betrayal and the acceptance.

She knows that she will never bear the title of Hokage, but she's going to go down fighting like a true Konoha warrior. The signs of battle are upon both of our bodies. Her skin is littered with kunai scratches and blood pours from the wounds. Her once golden hair is now stained a nasty coppery brown by the amount of bloodshed we've endured tonight. Her face does not bear the gentle smile it usually does; instead her pale lips are stretched into a feral grin. I can hear her snarling as the sounds of the enemy's approach gets louder. Her once blue eyes are now blood red and she's backed against the wall like a caged animal. I smell her thirst.

I'm not surprised that it matches mine; we both need retribution for what's happened to our village.

I look once more over the side of the cliff and see deep into the battlefield that I used to call home. We had no warning of the attack and many civilians were cut down in the streets before anyone knew what was happening. The battle has been hard and long. We lost so many friends and comrades in such a short amount of time.

Sakura had been the first to fall; she died taking Karin with her. Asuma followed her after he died trying to protect Kurenai and their unborn child. Once they fell the others were not too far behind. I closed my eye as I thought about them and their sacrifice. I vowed their sacrifice would not be in vain.

I looked down at my shaking hands and tried to still them. I had one more shot at Chidori and I was saving that for Sasuke. The tremble in my hands got worse as a cough racked through my body. I spit out the blood that filled my mouth. Either that kick to the ribs had punctured my lung or something else was wrong. I had been a ninja too long not to know the signs of internal bleeding.

I wiped my mouth on the back of my hand. My mask had been lost in the beginning of the battle; I found it comical that the thing that used to identify me was now lying shredded on the battlefield somewhere. All I had now was Obito's eye, which ached dully in my eye socket. I could feel the wetness leaking from it, Obito was crying. Only crybaby Obito could find the energy to cry in the midst of my last minutes. Was Obito mourning for the village that his relative was destroying? Was this the future you wanted to see old friend? I decided it didn't matter anymore, I would see them all in just a few minutes. I just wished it could have been on better terms.

I took off my ANBU chest plate and motioned for Naru to do the same. They would only be a hindrance when we attacked. We stood side-by-side on the cliff in our tattered, bloodstained clothes and faced away from the oncoming enemy.

I ran a hand through the stiff mess that was my hair and tied the forehead protector tightly to my head. Naru mirrored my actions. We would face him as Konoha warriors with our symbol proudly blazing through the darkness.

Everything is still as I listen for the footsteps signaling his approach and I can hear Naru's heartbeat as it slows with every breath. I can hear my own, beating loudly and irregularly in my ear. I didn't have to be a medic-nin to know I was dying.

I listen to Naru's labored breath and go rigid as I hear the light footfalls of our target. Naru's eyes burn brighter and the marks upon her cheeks stand out against the tan skin. I raise a hand to signal her and I take one last look over the edge of the cliff.

Sasuke has turned a once beautiful place into a virtual wasteland and death valley.

I hear Naru growl as Sasuke comes forward with his Chidori blazing and I turn around to stare at my ex-student. The battle had been easy for him; he had waited till his army had destroyed most of the village before he took to the battlefield. I looked in his eyes and saw his Sharingan blazing and blood running down his face like tears, a coward to the end. I looked towards Naru and saw her desire for his blood.

Sasuke had killed her dreams and with her dreams her precious people. I gathered the last bits of chakra I had and watched as the electricity ignited around my hand, I could feel my limbs growing numb. Naru never took her eyes off of Sasuke as she and a clone spun her remaining chakra around to make the Rasengan. Naru and I raced forward, my Chidori and her Rasengan burning bright in the darkness. We are closing in and Sasuke's laughing at us. He doesn't believe we will hit him and maybe he's right.

I feel Naru's chakra waver and flicker like a candle in the wind and watch as the red chakra battles to stay. I let myself get distracted and never felt Sasuke slice through the air with his sword. I watch in slow motion as it comes down on me.

I curse and try to move, but all I see is darkness and all I hear is Naru's raspy voice calling out an ancient and powerful jutsu.

"Hitotoki Dasshutsu no jutsu!"

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

Sasuke was so close I could smell him.

I watch Kakashi-sensei cough up blood and knew he was in bad shape. His silver hair was now stained pink and standing stiff on top of his head. His muscles bulged from stress and over working. He had fought so hard today. I watched him as he battled shinobi after shinobi in the hopes of protecting what was left of the village. His clothes had seen better days and his skin stank of dried blood and sweat. I wanted to look at his face and see the mystery that had plagued team seven since our first introductions, but I didn't. It was a hollow victory now, because team seven was dead. Our memories, victories, defeats, laughter, and tears would disappear in just a few minutes. I knew I was going to die, but I'll be damned before letting Sasuke win.

I blink back tears as I look over my once proud village. How could he have done this to our home? I felt trapped and tried to ignore the voice of Kyuubi from the inside of my head.

"Kit, release me and I'll give you the revenge you want."

His offer was tempting, but I was not going to release the Fox Demon into the world because I knew he wouldn't stop at just Sasuke.

"Kit, you are dying, can't you feel it? Your heart is beating harder and slower with every passing minute."

I shook my head and answered him. "Then I'll die protecting my Village."

Kyuubi was furious. "What village? The other brat has killed your Hokage and your friends. What are you trying to protect?"

I tried to stop the tears; Tsunade had died saving me. "I have to save what's left. As long as there are leaves, the will of fire will catch and burn brightly once more." Kyuubi was quiet and I was thankful.

I ignored the shaking in my legs as sensei told me to remove my armor. The final battle was beginning. I sniffed the air and froze, I smelled snake. I turned around and snarled at the traitor. I gather all the chakra Kyuubi will let me have and fire up a Rasengan as sensei makes a Chidori.

Side by side we attack, our villages last defense and last hope. I feel my chakra recede and yell at the fox, "What are you doing? We will die!"

Kyuubi glowed a golden red inside his cage and my mind was flooded with light. "What am I doing? I'm saving you and your sensei. You'll thank me for this later."

I could barely make out Kakashi-sensei getting sliced by Sasuke, but I could hear my voice calling out a jutsu I had never heard before.

"Hitotoki Dasshutsu no jutsu!"

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I blink my eyes and look up into blue skies and white fluffy clouds. Where had all the darkness gone? I looked around and saw tall trees and green grass. There was not a single hint of destruction anywhere. Had it all been a dream?

I sit up and groan, cradling my head in my hands and look at Naru. If she was here then it couldn't be a dream. She's curled beside me on the grass, but she looks so much smaller.

I stand up and realize quickly that my body doesn't feel right. I didn't feel the same labored breathing and internal bleeding I had earlier. Just what was that jutsu that she used? I stumble to the small lake beside us and look into the water.

I had the same silver hair and my mask was back, but something was missing. Then I realized my forehead protector was gone and it seemed like a bolt of lightning went through my body as I realized I did not possess a Sharingan. It took another instant to realize I was not covered in wounds from the battle nor was my mask gone. I was clean and healed, but something was still off about my appearance.

My eyes widen as I looked closely at my reflection and at my height.

I was six years old again.


	2. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

Have you ever had that moment where you are sure you are dreaming and the things happening around you cannot be real? As I stared at the reflection looking back at me I had one of those moments.

I gingerly lifted my small fingers up to touch my face, hoping that the reflection would not do the same. When it did, I told myself this was all a genjutsu or perhaps Sasuke had captured me inside the twisted world of Tsukuyomi, where reality was not all it seemed.

I bit down hard on my lip and felt the blood run down my chin and sink into the fabric of my mask; the illusion didn't go away. I was still sitting beside a clear blue lake, in the middle of a lush green forest looking at a reflection of my six-year-old self.

I stood up and turned away from the water and walked over to Naru, shaking her awake.

Her eyes no longer held the burning redness they had earlier, but they held a tiredness that can only be associated with chakra exhaustion and grief. I sat down in front of her before asking her the questions on my mind.

"Naru, why am I six years old again?"

She surprised me by laughing; it was a dry and rough sound. "Apparently Kyuubi was a bigger coward than I thought."

"What do you mean?"

She looked at the blue sky before breaking out into a smile. "My fur covered headache sent us into the past, in the hopes of saving his sorry fur butt from dying."

I stood up and paced in front of Naru. "Okay, Kyuubi sent us back in time. I can deal with that, but how far back Naru?"

Naru stood up and shook her head before stretching. I could see she was only a few inches shorter than I was and about six-years-old herself. "Don't really know sensei, it's far back enough that Konoha is not in ruins anymore."

I pinched the bridge of my nose; I could feel a migraine coming on.

"All I know sensei is what Kyuubi told me before you woke me up."

* * *

 _Flashback…._

 _Naru stood in front of the giant cage that was still shimmering with red light._

 _Kyuubi was lying down and panting against his front paws, as he spoke. "Well kit, you won't have to worry about dying today."_

 _Naru glared at the fox. "What did you do fur ball?"_

 _The fox laughed only to break into a coughing fit. "I sent you and that sensei of yours into the past."_

" _But why?"_

 _Kyuubi looked deep into Naru's eyes before speaking. "Simple, our lives are tied together, if you die, then I die. I was not ready to die, so I used a jutsu known only to the tailed beasts to send you two back in time, and apparently it worked. So why are you complaining Kit? The jutsu I used will help you save your pathetic precious people."_

 _Naru sighed and rubbed her eyes. "So we are getting like a second chance?"_

 _Kyuubi laughed and it sent chills down Naru's spine. "Oh, yes you'll get a second chance, but it won't be the same one you are thinking."_

 _Naru beat against the bars. "What did you do fox?" Kyuubi laughed before Naru was expelled out of the mindscape by Kakashi waking her up. The last thing she heard was Kyuubi telling her to talk to the Third Hokage if she wanted more answers._

 _End Flashback….._

* * *

"That's all he said?"

She nodded her head yes. "Pretty much, but he knows something we don't know."

I sighed and looked toward the north where a road traveled up a hill. "Well we can't just stay here; let's see what we can see up the road." Naru nodded and followed after me. We were both exhausted from the trip across time and from wondering exactly where we were.

"Sensei, he said to talk to Hokage-jiiji, so does that mean we are far enough into the past that he's still alive?"

I nodded my head and tried to ignore the hopeful look on her face. "When you mess with time, anything is possible." I walked ahead of Naru and stopped as I made it to the top of the road; I felt my heart drop into my stomach as I looked at what lay before me.

The village of Konoha was bustling with life and was still the beautiful village I had known since I was young. Then I saw the difference between this Konoha and the Konoha of the future. I heard Naru give a yelp of happiness and watched as she tried to run into the bustle of the marketplace, but I grabbed her back and stopped her. She snarled at me and tried to tug her arm from my grasp; I couldn't speak to her because I didn't trust my own voice. I simply pointed to the Hokage Mountain and saw realization sink into her eyes.

There were only three faces carved into the Mountain. The Forth Hokage had not been chosen yet. I knew then how far in the past Kyuubi had sent us, we were in my childhood.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I stood on top of the hill with Kakashi holding my arm for what seemed like hours. I couldn't believe the fur ball had sent us a good 20 years into the past. How would we get a second chance here? "We have to go down there Kakashi."

I saw him nod, but I knew from the look in his eyes that he had not heard a word I said. "Naru, we have a problem. We could be anywhere in the past, but I'm pretty sure we are somewhere around the same time as my childhood." I chewed this information over in my head and decided that I really needed to kick the fur ball's butt.

"What are we going to do sen…?" I turned around quickly as we were interrupted.

"KAKASHI!"

My eyes widened as I stared at the man before us. The spiky blond hair, bright blue eyes and smiling face told me instantly who he was. I whispered underneath my breath in awe, "The Yondaime."

Kakashi looked like he had just seen a ghost. His eyes had widened and the portion of his face that was visible was very sickly pale. I poked his side. "Kakashi? Are you alright?"

He just ignored me and spoke to the man. "Minato-sensei is that you?"

The blond man let out another smile. "Of course 'kashi. I just got back from my mission and wanted to see if you wanted ramen." I stared in awe at the man who was my idol and watched as his eyes flickered between the two of us and his grin increased. "So who's your friend? She's really pretty."I blushed and jerked my arm away from Kakashi and grinned as I saw his own blush over the mask. "I umm, I found her in the park. And I umm, need to take her to the Sandaime."

Minato noticed his nervousness but didn't say anything. "Okay, I've got to give a mission report there anyway. Come on you two." I followed behind those two, wondering how different this new age would be.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

Seeing sensei for the first time in 16 years was a shock and it terrified me that I froze like that. I wasn't acting like the same cool and collected Jounin I was in the future. I pondered this while we walked. Was it possible that not only were our bodies reverted back to age six, but also our chakra networks and other shinobi skills, like emotion control?

I shook my head and hoped the Third Hokage could help us with whatever was going on. I let my eyes rest on sensei's back; not truly believing he was alive, and I couldn't help but wonder who else was alive. My eyes widened with the thought, was my father alive?

"Okay you two, here is the Hokage Tower and yes Kakashi, I know you know where it's at but I wanted to make sure your friend here did. Now I've got to drop this off by the missions desk and go see a man about a frog." I rolled my eyes at my sensei and walked the stairs with Naru trailing behind me and looking at all the other ninja around us. She was mesmerized by the people around us and was making sure to drink in all the sights. I knocked on the Hokage's door and turned to her.

"Staring is rude you know." She smacked me on the arm as the door opened. I saw the desire she had to go throw her arms around the old man, but she stopped. The man before her was different from the old man in the future; this man was still in his prime and had hair.

"Kakashi-kun, what do I owe this pleasure?" I knew I would have to get his attention or he would never believe us, so I talked to him in ANBU code that only ANBU captains know.

"The wolf prowled long and fought hard, but in the end the snake got away."

The Third was no longer sitting at his desk; he had gotten from his chair, closed the door and the window before standing in front of me. "Where did you learn that code Kakashi?" I looked him straight in the eye.

"What do you know about the tailed beasts Hokage-sama?"

I watched his eyes widen slightly; I had taken him by surprise. His chin tightened and his brow creased in concentration. "Where did you learn about the tailed beasts Kakashi?" I looked out the closed window and back at Naru. She was patiently waiting her turn to explain. I took a deep breath and began my story.

"Hokage-sama, I'm going to tell you a tale that you might not believe, but I pray you do, because your belief is the deciding factor on where the future leads."

The Sandaime sat back down at his desk and motioned for us to do the same. "Begin the story."

I took a deep breath and began, "I guess it all starts when Uzumaki Naru was born. This happens in about seven years from now…"

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I watched Kakashi-sensei tell the much younger Third Hokage our tale. He told of my birth and the Kyuubi's sealing into me by the Yondaime. He described Team Seven and our many adventures with a little bit of pride in his voice and then he told of the destruction of Konoha at the hands of Sasuke.

I watched as his eyes bore into the Thirds, almost as if he could convey the truth through them. "We were going to die, but Kyuubi sent us into the past to survive. He said you would be able to answer our questions. Can you Hokage-sama?"

I turned to the Third and spoke to him. "Hokage-sama, do you believe our tale?"

I watched as the man pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed. "I know of the jutsu you are talking about. It is supposedly a legend that only tailed beasts can perform, and the simple fact that a Chunin and a young girl know it makes your story very believable."

He looked out the window. "The jutsu is very complicated and could only be used one time. The object is to send the subject far enough in the past to completely change the future for the better. Have you ever heard the saying 'cities never crumble in a day?' Whatever caused Konoha's destruction started here, in this time period. You two have been given a chance to change the future, but I will warn you. There are dangers to messing with the future."

I sighed, "Nothing can be easy can it?"

He shook his head 'no.' "If life were easy there would be no reason for you two to be here. I think the first thing we need to do is test your skills. Kakashi you will retain your same rank of Chunin, but I need to see how your six year old body is reacting with your 29 year old mind. Naru, since you are not technically born yet, I will have to accept you into the Village as an immigrant. I will test your skills later this week to see what level you will be at, but if what Kakashi is telling me is true, then you should have no problem attaining the rank of Chunin. We will also have to change your last name; we have Whirlpool ambassadors that would question the Uzumaki part of your name, if you ever meet them."

He got up and went to the bookshelf behind him and took out a small black book, bound in leather with golden writing across the front cover. "This is the book of the tailed beasts. In it are the answers to some of your questions. I have a meeting to go to; stay in this room and find your answers."

Kakashi's eyes followed him as he left the room; I took the book from the desk and opened it. The first page bore a beautiful picture of a red fox, nine tails fanning behind it, and a silver wolf running through a lush forest. I traced the picture with my finger and flipped the pages until I saw one entitled time travel jutsus.

" **The time travel jutsu is one of the only things the tailed beasts can perform once. This jutsu was designed by the tailed beasts to redo the past and change the outcome of the world, but this jutsu can only be performed when the tailed beast has been sealed into a human. Then and only then can the beast gather enough positive life energy to bend the laws of time and space."**

I stopped reading and looked at Kakashi. "Naru, what does it say about possible reactions to traveling through time?"

I scanned the page. "Let's see, okay:"

" **When a tailed beast sends a person, or persons, into the past they must send them to the beginning of the problem, in the hopes that the one key event that started the downfall can be changed. The only problem is that the bodies of the travelers will be reduced to a child-like state and they will not retain all of their previous abilities. In fact, as time goes on they will slowly lose the memories of their previous life, but will still retain the memories of certain key events that they must change. The travelers will find their bodies reacting in a child-like way, but their minds wanting to react in the way their real age is. The travelers should not let this bother them, let the flesh act accordingly and train to obtain the same skills you once had. No one expects a child to be able to perform as an adult, even shinobi children still act like children. Let this be a warning to all travelers, even though you change the outcome of the future, it does not mean it will be for the better. Time travel is tricky and one wrong change can destroy everything you have ever worked for."**

I put the book down. "So we are eventually going to forget about our future?"

He nodded. "That's what it sounds like, but what bothers me is the whole, change key events thing, how do we know which ones to change?"

I sighed and scanned the book again. "It said that we will know when the event comes."

He tapped his fingers in annoyance against the desk before speaking again, "That makes a lot of sense."

I glared at him. "You were a sarcastic little kid weren't you sensei?"

He laughed before taking the book from me and closing it. "Whatever happens, we will do it together?"

"Sensei?"

"I promise Naru, this time it will be different."

I smiled at him, believing every word and praying he was right. "Sensei I…" I watched as his body went rigid and he reached for his weapons pouch, I turned around and saw a masked ANBU staring us down.

"Kakashi, I don't think he's here to say 'hi.'"

He shook his head and tossed me a kunai; I didn't have any weapons on me. "Naru, can you gather your chakra?" I did and turned to him expectantly; Kakashi looked at me and nodded.

"Get him."

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I watched as Naru twirled the kunai around her finger. We might not have the same chakra skills, but we remembered our teamwork.

Naru and I had been partners since she had come back from training with Jiraiya. With my strategies and her pranking skills we were close to unstoppable. I gathered my chakra and wanted to groan at the size of it, it was big for a six-year-old, but it wasn't my normal capacity.

I channeled chakra into my fist and ran towards the ANBU, hoping he would take the bait. He did and dodged me. "Kid you are going to have to do a lot better than that." I smirked behind my mask as I saw Naru perform Kage No Bunshin. Thanks to Kyuubi she had the capacity to perform the technique, but her control sucked so she could only produce one clone. I saw the frustration in her eyes and silently nodded to her.

Both Narus ran towards the ANBU with kunai drawn, while he was distracted I gathered chakra to my feet and raced up the wall. He was toying with Naru and taking steps back while laughing at her. If he would move a little closer I would have him.

He got within jumping distance and I jumped onto his back and fell to the ground with him. The impact made me roll off of his back, but Naru was there to jump back on. She placed a kunai at the junction where his neck met the porcelain mask and I whispered in his ear, "Don't underestimate us."

A door opened and the Third walked in smiling. Naru removed the kunai from the junction of the ANBU's neck and stepped back as he stood to his feet. He bowed to the Hokage before turning and walking out the door. The Hokage turned to us. "Surprised? I needed to see your skill levels and what better way than to surprise you? I will admit I myself am surprised. I never expected you two to work so well together or even get him to the floor. I would say you both deserve the rank of Chunin, but I'm not going to give it to Naru."

I blinked and heard her yell, "Why not!"

The Third looked at the girl. "Kakashi is retaining his previous rank because he showed the same skills he had in the Chunin Exam months ago. You, on the other hand, are talented, but I think it would do you some good to relearn the basics before I give you a Chunin rank. I'm going to assign you a Jounin instructor and after he trains you, then you can take the Chunin Exam."

"So I'm back at Genin level right?"

The Third nodded. "I'm only doing this because it will help you in the long run. Your basic skills are lacking, but your chakra levels are enormous, which has to do with the Kyuubi. You would benefit greatly from the instructor I'm going to assign you."

Naru just mumbled and looked at the ground. "Now, you two have read the book and I will tell you that this has to be kept a secret. If word gets out that Konoha has two time travelers who know the outcome of the future," he got a faraway look in his eye, "let's just say it would be bad, for you two and for Konoha."

Naru and I nodded to show him we understood. "Hokage-sama, what do we do from here?"

"First, I want both of you to go to the hospital and get a full check-up; we need to make sure your bodies are not stressed out from the jutsu. Then go home and rest. I'll send a scroll later to explain what tomorrow holds."

He turned to Naru. "We will have to tell your new sensei that you posses a bloodlimit that has never been seen before. It would explain your red chakra and, from what Kakashi has told me, your healing abilities. Your sensei cannot know about the Kyuubi until I tell him or until the time comes that you tell him. It will be your decision Naru."

She thanked him and I turned to him again. "Yes sir! Come on Naru." I dragged her out with me, then stopped and looked back at the Hokage. "Sir, what is Naru's name going to be?"

He smiled. "Uzu Naru. Now you can retain a small portion of your name, but still have a completely different one."

Naru smiled softly at the man. "Thank you Hokage-sama."

Together we walked to the hospital, ready to change the future and save Konoha.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Hours later the Third Hokage read over the lab reports from the hospital concerning Uzu Naru and Hatake Kakashi. Kakashi's vitals were good, but his chakra system was slightly overworked, but that would heal within a few days.

The Third picked up Naru's blood report and sighed, she was a direct match to Namikaze Minato. She was his biological daughter and had no idea that her own father had sealed the Kyuubi into her. If Minato was her father then, unless something changed, Kushina was her mother. The Third rubbed his tired eyes and sighed; how would Naru react to this information and did Kakashi know? He put the reports down as a knock sounded throughout the office and a man walked in. "The mission's desk said you wanted me to see me?"

The Third looked up and smiled at the tired, dirt covered man before saying, "I've got a new mission for you; how do you feel about training a Genin?"

The man before him blinked before talking, "A Genin? The academy doesn't hold the Genin exams for another two months." The Third watched the man run a hand through his long silver hair before adjusting the tanto at his side. "Why would a Genin graduate in the middle of the year Hokage-sama?"

"This is a very special case and one that needs to be handled very delicately. I was brought a young girl today, one with amazing potential and chakra, but who lacks the basic skills needed to become a Chunin."

The man blinked. "She's good enough to become a Chunin? How old is she?"

"She's six-years-old, the same age as your son, but she needs someone who can teach her and keep up with her. Will you do it Sakumo?"

The man, Hatake Sakumo sighed. "When do I get to meet her?"

The Third smiled. "Tonight. She will be staying with you until I find her a more suitable home."

Sakumo nodded to the Hokage and turned to leave.

"Sakumo, her name is Uzu Naru. I'll explain about her bloodlimit tomorrow. I can't wait for you to see it in action."

Sakumo nodded and walked out the door, wondering how he was going to handle two six-year-olds tonight.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I walked into Kakashi's home and was mesmerized by the size of it. "Why don't you live here in the future?"

I saw his shoulders tense and knew what I asked was taboo. He didn't answer as he just removed his sandals and went into the kitchen. I followed behind and watched as he took out pots and pans to cook something to eat.

I took a pot from him. "I'll do it. I know from experience that you can't cook."

He grabbed the newspaper off of the counter, with some difficulty because the counter was just a little taller than he was, and smacked me on top of the head before laughing. "That's not fair Naru; I survived off of my own cooking before."

I shook my head, stood on a stool in front of the sink and filled the pot with water. "Yeah and it's a wonder you didn't die of food poisoning. I've seen the mess you eat; it's either instant or take-out. Maybe this time around you can learn to cook."

He glared at me. "I remember a time when all you ate was ramen."

"Yeah, but I eventually had to learn to cook while I was with Jiraiya or I would have starved." He laughed back at me. Ever since Tsunade partnered us up for missions, it had been like this. We had gradually become friends; he annoyed me with his teasing words and I kept him on his toes with my relentless pranks.

It sounds corny to say that we completed each other, but we were just good for each other. He saved me from Akatsuki when they captured me the year I turned fifteen and I saved him from grief after Gai died.

I smiled sadly as I remembered that mission. Gai had been Kakashi's original partner; surprising I know, but they were loyal to each other. From what I found out from Lee, they had been taken by surprise and Gai had been poisoned. He never regained consciousness and died in a hospital in Suna. Kakashi had been devastated and refused to take another partner, but Tsunade wouldn't take no for an answer and practically chained him down to announce I was his new partner.

That was the year I turned fifteen and five months before Akatsuki captured me. Even though that was a horrible experience, it was still one of my happiest memories. That was the day Kakashi acknowledged me as his partner for the first time and we had been close ever since. I still called him sensei even though we were partners now, habits were hard to break.

"Naru, the noodles are boiling over."

I jumped and turned the heat down and heard his laughter, it was different from the laughter I remember. His six-year-old laugh was lighter and wasn't rough. I smiled wickedly as a thought crossed my mind, I was going to witness the Great Copy Ninja go through puberty!

I left a laugh escape my throat as I imagined his voice cracking while shouting out Chidori or another jutsu. He looked at me funny as I held my stomach and laughed. "Are you going to tell me why you are laughing like a maniac?"

I shook my head no and tried to catch my breath, "Hand me the butter, the noodles are almost ready."

I was still standing on the stool; being short had its disadvantages, and was waiting for him to look in the refrigerator and get the butter. "You want butter or margarine?"

"Butter, unhealthy and fattening, just the way I like my ramen." He eye-smiled at me, even though we were partners I had yet to see the face behind the mask. If only I had looked while I thought we were going to die, then the mystery would have been solved. I pouted to myself as he walked over with the tub of butter.

Then his body stilled and turned towards the kitchen door.

I watched the knob turn and the door open to reveal a tall, silver haired man. Kakashi dropped the butter and the slimy white stuff went everywhere. His voice sounded small and full of disbelief as he said the next words that stopped my own breathing,

"Daddy?"


	3. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo blinked as he looked into the kitchen and saw a young six-year-old girl standing on a stool cooking ramen. She was shorter and scrawnier than most six-year-old girls her age, but her blue eyes held a determination that he had seen in fellow comrades as they took to the battlefield.

It was a look of defiance and mischief; he decided right then that he was going to like this girl. Her golden hair was cut short and fell to just above her shoulders and across her cheeks were three scars that resembled whiskers.

Sakumo vaguely wondered if they were a part of her bloodlimit.

He watched as the butter fell out of his son's hands and stared at him with eyes full of sadness, guilt and disbelief.

The broken way his son called out to him struck a chord in his heart, the mission hadn't lasted that long had it? It also registered in Sakumo's mind what his son had called him; Kakashi hadn't called him "daddy" since he had become a Genin.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

My father was alive and standing right in front of me.

The six-year-old part of me wanted to run to him, wrap my arms around his legs and cry into the fabric of his pants leg, but the adult part of me reasoned that I couldn't change all of a sudden. It had to be a gradual process or else he would get suspicious.

I remembered the words from the book, " **let the flesh act accordingly** " so I figured screw it; this time was going to be different because I wasn't losing him this time around. I walked as calmly as I could, which was hard because my whole being wanted to run and looked up into his eyes.

He was smiling at me. I lost it and buried my face into his pant leg and tried to calm the sobs that forced their way through my lungs. He pried my hands from his leg and bent down to look me in the eyes. His steel gray eyes were full of concern as they lifted the bangs from my forehead and placed a cool hand there. "Are you okay 'kashi?"

I nodded numbly and tensed as he picked me up only to relax again and place my head on his shoulder. I brought my arms up and wrapped them tightly around his neck. I know I must have looked silly to Naru, but at that moment I didn't care. All those years of loneliness came rushing back to me and try as I might, I could not stop them from coming and invading my mind.

In all honesty, I was shocked at myself. The first time around I had stopped calling him "daddy" after I became a ninja; so why was it the first word out of my mouth when I saw him? He touched my head again. "I think you might have a fever Kakashi."

I shook my head 'no.' "I'm fine, just a little tired."

He looked at me strangely before placing me back on the floor and turning to Naru. "You must be Uzu Naru."

She nodded and continued to stir the noodles. When I saw her eyes they were slightly red as if she had been crying, but then she smiled brightly and all traces were gone. "I am, but who are you?"

I turned to my father and watched as he smirked at her. "I'm Hatake Sakumo, your new sensei."

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I smiled sadly at Kakashi as he looked at his father for the first time in 22 years. I knew only bits and pieces of information about Hatake Sakumo, like he was the White Fang of Konoha and before his "disgrace" was on the same level as the Sannin.

Inside my mind I growled. Saving your teammates lives instead of completing the mission was no reason to disgrace a ninja and that disgrace caused Sakumo to later take his own life. That was common knowledge stuff though, the other information I had learned from Kakashi himself, well, from his nightmares.

We had been partners for about a year when we were attacked on a mission and Kakashi was heavily wounded. We were alone and miles away from any sort of medic ninja.

* * *

 _Flashback…_

 _Naru panted as she tried to dodge kunai and shuriken while supporting a barely breathing Kakashi._

 _She cursed as a kunai brushed her arm and left a bleeding cut; if they didn't lose the ninja behind them they were done for. Naru stopped long enough to allow Kakashi to mumble out a weak command, "Lose them at the waterfall."_

 _Naru blinked before remembering the waterfall they had passed at the start of their mission. If she could make it there, they could hide in the cave they found that rested behind the crashing water. Together they pushed off the tree and landed on the grass. The waterfall was only meters ahead of them and the enemy ninja right behind them. Naru and Kakashi stumbled to the edge of the river that connected to the waterfall and jumped in; if they didn't do this just right they would die._

 _Their bodies were carried toward the waterfall opening and they both began to draw on the little bit of chakra they had. Naru grabbed onto Kakashi's hands and pumped chakra into her feet as Kakashi did the same. Naru closed her eyes as she felt herself falling over the side of the waterfall, but when she didn't hit jagged rock she opened them to see both her and Kakashi's chakra had stuck to the underside of a rock that jutted out from the falling waters._

 _Kakashi's eye was rolling into the back of his head as Naru grasped his hand and pulled both of them into the cave. She laid him down and huddled into the side of the moist cavern and heard the Sound Ninjas overhead. "There is no way they survived that fall, especially not in the condition they were in." Naru let out a shaky breath as she heard them leave._

 _Kakashi moaned quietly against his clenched teeth, which brought her mind back to the task at hand. His wounds were beyond bad. He had multiple kunai wounds in his chest and, if the bruise on his side was any indication, he had a couple of broken ribs. She gently removed his vest and shirt and took out bandages from her pack and began wrapping his ribs tightly. She then turned her attention to the weeping cuts; thanks to her heightened sense of smell she could smell the poison and infection in them._

 _Oto had a nasty habit of using slow acting poisons that caused madness in the infected person, but luck was on their side; Tsunade had sent them out with a vial of the antidote. She poured the liquid into the wounds and watched as the liquid brought the poison and some of the infection out. She then moved to his lower body and saw the slashes and blood that littered his pants; those pants would have to come off._

 _She undid his pants and slid them down his legs, wincing at the angry looking slashes. She poured the antidote into the wounds and bandaged them as well before trying to clean herself up. Thanks to her healing ability she didn't have to worry about the poison, but she did try to clean the shallow wounds that were left._

 _She opened her pack, the only thing she had been able to save when they were ambushed, and took out a blanket, covering the half dressed Kakashi with it. She didn't dare try to start a fire. If their position was given away, they were done for. Naru watched the waters fall in front of the cave opening and was mesmerized by the gentle sounds and designs the water would make. Before she knew it, she was fast asleep against the cave wall._

 _She was awoken later by Kakashi's voice. "No..no..don't leave me. No please don't leave me."_

 _She stood up and touched his forehead, it was burning up; his body was fighting off the infection. She took a bandage and wet it with the water from the waterfall and removed his forehead protector to place the wet cloth there. "Please don't leave. No….please."_

 _Naru gently brushed the silver bangs back and tried to help him through his fever-induced nightmare. "I won't leave you Kakashi."_

 _He just writhed underneath the blanket and blindly grasped her hand. "You lied. You left. Why dad, why?"_

 _Naru pulled her hand back in shock and listened to her partner. "Alone, so alone. You were my hero. But you left me." Naru's gaze softened and rewet the bandage before putting it back on his forehead; she noticed the sweat that covered his body and the thrashing movements he made as the infection took its toll on his mind._

" _How could you leave me? No…come back….please….I'd do it differently….just don't leave me again." Kakashi quieted down as his fever dropped and as the infection ran its course._

 _The next morning Kakashi was still not strong enough to leave, but he had no recollection of the events from the night before or of his own pleading words and Naru never brought them up. She knew he had his secrets and as his partner she would keep them to herself._

 _End Flashback…._

* * *

I never did mention the events of that night to him; if he wanted to tell me he would.

In the short time I had been his partner I had learned one thing, anything about Kakashi's past was taboo and if you wanted him to continue talking to you, then you didn't bring it up. I continued to stir the noodles for the ramen as I watched out of the corner of my eye as Kakashi went to the man I knew he had looked up to.

He was calmer than I would have been; if I meet my father for the first time in 22 years, I would have ran to him and never let him go. Kakashi had always been good at hiding his emotions and looking at him now, that hadn't changed, but there was something in his aura that told me he was fighting his own urges to run to the man in front of him. Then he let go of that restraint and did bury his face into the man's legs.

I looked away when I noticed he was crying, I knew how much this man had meant to Kakashi, but I also knew my partner had a proud streak in him that wouldn't want me to see him break down. I stirred the almost ready noodles and listened as his sobs quieted down and as they talked quietly to one another.

I felt my own eyes fill with tears as I thought about my own childhood and the loneliness I had felt growing up with no one. We could change that; we had the power to change everything. I heard Sakumo speak to me and I turned hoping he wouldn't notice the redness to my eyes; I gave him an Uzumaki Naru smile before answering him. "I am, but who are you?"

I knew who he was, but it wouldn't hurt to ask. His words floored me still. "I'm Hatake Sakumo, your new sensei."

I stared at him and tried to get my mouth to work, but it wasn't listening and the only thing that came out was a pathetic squeak. "What? Not disappointed I hope?"

I furiously shook my head no. "Just surprised."

He laughed before ruffling Kakashi's hair and walking into the adjacent room, which had a staircase that led to the next floor. "I'm going to shower off, then I'll be back down and we can discuss your training." He stopped before he made it completely out of the room and turned around. "And would one of you mind cleaning the butter off of the floor?"

I watched him as he went upstairs before turning back to Kakashi, who had grabbed a towel from the counter and was wiping up the butter. He pointed to the pot behind me. "It's boiling over again."

I yelped and turned the heat down before adding some spices to the mix, and a little of the butter that was still in the bowl. It was done, so I moved it off the hot stovetop and onto another one. Then I hopped down from the stool and stood before Kakashi.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I wanted to laugh as I watched Naru try to save the ramen from boiling over and couldn't help but wonder why she was so inattentive tonight. She stood before me and I felt like I had to explain my actions from earlier. "Naru, about what happened earlier. I couldn't help but run to him, it was all too much to hold in. I was just…"

She put a finger on my masked lips to silence me. "Sensei, I don't know what you are talking about. I didn't see anything."

I smiled behind my mask at her; she knew me too well sometimes and I couldn't help but feel grateful that she wouldn't bring it up again. "You know Naru, you can't call me sensei anymore because it's too risky."

She nodded before answering. "I know, but habits are hard to break. Now where are the bowls Sen-Kakashi?" I pointed to the bottom cabinet and she got out three bowls and began handing them to me and I began ladling ramen into them.

My dad, the thought of him being alive still struck me harder than a bolt of lightning, came from downstairs clean and refreshed from his shower. I handed him his bowl silently before sitting beside Naru at the small table in the kitchen and eating my own ramen. Finally when the silence seemed unbearable, dad broke it. "Tomorrow we start your training Naru. The Hokage mentioned you have a bloodlimit, but your basics skills were lacking."

I snorted into my ramen and mumbled under my breath. "You mean her skills suck."

Naru glared at me and dad roared with laughter. "There's the Kakashi that I remember leaving here, you must be feeling better." I grinned and continued eating my ramen.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I swear my left eye twitched as I heard Kakashi's comment and Sakumo's laughter. "Now if you are through teasing me, can we continue this conversation?"

I watched as Sakumo raised a silver eyebrow at me and his eyes twinkled. "Yes ma'am, we'll start bright and early in the morning and begin conditioning training. Then we'll move on to seeing how bad your basic skills are. If you survive that then we'll work on the other things I have in mind for you."

"You're not going to tell me details about what you have planned?" I watched as his face twisted into a smile that I automatically didn't like.

"What's the fun in that? Now you will dwell on it tonight and I can get the joy of seeing your face in the morning after your worst nightmares become reality."

My eyes widened in shock as he continued speaking. "I'm not a mean person, but I'm not going to go easy on you. I refuse to send a ninja into the field that is not prepared and I will prepare you to the best of my ability. Even if that means training you into the ground and making you get back up if you weren't knocked down hard enough."

He looked me square in the eye before continuing. "Tomorrow you are to become my student and it's my responsibility to turn you into a strong and proud Konoha shinobi. Your training will be hard and it will be long; you will beg me to stop before the end of tomorrow's training session, but you will greatly reap the rewards if you stick with it. I suggest you go to sleep early tonight for tomorrow your training begins. Kakashi, show her the guest room. That's where she will be sleeping till the Hokage finds a more suitable home for her." He got up and put his bowl into the sink before walking out of the kitchen and to his bedroom.

I turned to Kakashi in disbelief, still floored by my new sensei's words. "Was he always like that about training?"

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I honestly didn't know how to answer Naru's question. On one hand I wanted to defend my father, but on the other I wanted to agree with her.

My father had a reputation of being a hard teacher. I had experienced that personally during the Chunin Exams, but he was also a fair teacher. He had given me the same speech the night I had asked him to train me for the final round of the Chunin Exams and I'm going to be honest, he kept his promises about the training. It was hard, long, and if I remembered correctly I did want to beg for him to stop. "Well Naru, what did you expect?"

"I don't know something similar to you."

I glared at her. "And just what was wrong with the way I trained you?"

She laughed. "The fact that my basic skills were never better than average should be a good enough answer for you. It wasn't that you didn't teach, you just led by example not explanation."

I nodded to her. "I'll let that one slide, but I must warn you about his training, he's not lying when he said it would be hard. My father's team consists of three personally trained men that answer to him and the Hokage only; they are Konoha's best kept secret and better than the Inuzuka at tracking. Want to know the only reason he has three instead of the four to make a complete team?"

She nodded her head. "Because no one else can complete the training."

I watched as she paled. "Is it really that hard?"

I nodded. "Yeah, but it's worth it Naru. If you can prove to him that you can stick the training out, then everything gets easier from there, but don't worry. He won't use the same training regimen to train a Genin as he does his men. It's a more watered down version, but it's still hard."

"Did you stick it out?"

"Yeah, but barely, he didn't go easy on me, in fact, I swear he tried extra hard to make me quit. That's the key thing Naru, he doesn't quit you, he tries to make you quit him."

She gulped before speaking. "If I'm going to live here will he act the same way he does at training?"

I laughed, earning a glare from her. "That's another thing, it's like he can turn off his teacher mode. Once you step back through those doors, he's goes back to the teasing and lightheartedness that you saw earlier. That's when you meet the real Hatake Sakumo; the one you are training with is the White Fang of Konoha and he doesn't like half-hearted attempts."

I grabbed her arm and pulled her upstairs. "This is your room." I opened the door to reveal a medium sized room with a twin bed and neutral colors. Naru walked in and sat on the low bed.

"Thanks Kakashi, for everything."

I eye-smiled at her. "See you in the morning Naru, and don't worry about training. You already know it's going to be hard." I dodged the pillow as she tossed at me.

Tomorrow was going to be interesting.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo stretched as he got out of bed and looked at the clock, 4:00 a.m. Yep, it was time to start his day.

He walked into his bathroom and shaved before putting on his clothes and running a hand through his unbound silver hair. He pulled out a ponytail tie from the bathroom drawer and pulled his hair back. He looked in the mirror before grabbing a mask from the drawer as well.

He hardly ever wore the mask inside Konoha unless he was training and since today he would be training his new "student" he figured it was necessary.

He walked down the hall, but stopped outside his son's door and gently pushed the door open to look inside. Kakashi was sprawled across the bed with the covers kicked to the end of the bed and one arm hanging off the side. Kakashi's behavior yesterday disturbed him; Sakumo decided that he would talk to Minato later about his son's strange behavior.

He closed the door and walked to Naru's door and found her sleeping peacefully on her side and curled up around a pillow. His eyes trailed to the clock on the wall, it was almost 4:30 and that meant it was time to start training. Sakumo left the hallway and went into the kitchen, stopping only to grab a jug of water and ice cubes.

As he made his way back to the girl's room a part of him told him he would regret this one day, that the girl had too much of a mischievous streak in her to mess with, but with a push of the door and an upturning of the ice cold water the damage was done. Sakumo grinned behind the mask he was wearing as she jumped from the bed and cursed at him. "Now where did such a pretty little girl learn such foul words?"

She stopped ranting and froze as she realized who was talking to her. "Sakumo-sensei?"

He didn't answer as he walked out of the room and found Kakashi in the hallway, rubbing the sleep from his eyes with his own mask in place before turning back to the dripping girl. "Get dressed and meet me outside, you have four minutes before I leave. You can put on whatever is in that drawer until we get you some more clothes."

Naru's eyes widened and she slammed the door and proceeded to get dressed. Kakashi stared at the jug in his father's hand before speaking. "That was a little cruel wasn't it?"

Sakumo patted his son on the head. "You are just lucky I ran out of water, I was coming to your room next." Kakashi stepped back slowly before running back to his room and slamming the door shut.

The White Fang of Konoha went downstairs and stepped outside, looking into the early morning sky; it was a good day to begin her training.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I opened the drawer and saw what looked to be Kakashi's old clothing. I sighed and began putting on the black shorts and the deep red shirt, they didn't fit me exactly as I had always been small for my age, but they would do for today.

I raced out the door and ran smack into Sakumo-sensei. My eyes widened as he turned around and his steel grey eyes bored into me, I was officially terrified. "Good morning Naru-chan."

The way he said my name was dripping with sickly sweetness. Yep, today was going to be "fun." "Good morning sensei."

He looked me up and down before grinning. "We'll get you some new clothes tomorrow." I grinned back at him and straightened my baggy clothes.

He grunted before walking forward and putting bands on my arms and legs. "You will begin this morning by running laps around Konoha with me."

I blinked and looked up at him. "I'm not going to make you do anything I myself cannot do. Let's go."

I then made the mistake of asking him a very stupid question. "How many laps?"

He chuckled. "Until I say stop, is that a problem?"

I shook my head. "No sir!"

We began our laps around Konoha and I learned fairly quickly what the bands were for. They were weight sets that ran on chakra instead of a metal. Sakumo-sensei decided the pace and you better keep up or he would add weight to the bands. I was packing five pounds on each limb by the time we had made five laps around Konoha and was feeling every pound. I know five pounds doesn't seem like a lot, but having a six-year-old's body and carrying 20 extra pounds can mess with your physical skills.

"Come on Naru! Just a couple of more laps."

I learned something else today; sensei doesn't understand standard measurement. Where to me a couple of laps would mean two, his meant anywhere from five to ten. I was exhausted and running on fumes by the time he said our jog was over. If I had the energy I would have glared at him.

I did take the time to look at the training ground. It had many trees and a river that flowed through the side of it along with wooden posts. "Are we going to work on strengthening my basic skills now sensei?"

He laughed at me. "Nope, we are still doing conditioning training. Now we will do 200 pushups, 200 sit-ups, 100 leg squats and once we are through with that we'll do a cool down."

I didn't even want to know what the cool down was as I got on the ground and began my pushups.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

After my dad and Naru left, I simply got back in bed and slept through their early morning training. I probably should have gone too, but I had training with Minato-sensei today and it was too early for my liking.

The only bad thing was that I remembered my training started at 8:00 in the morning and I hadn't seen 8:00 in the morning since I was in ANBU. I managed to roll myself out of the bed because I couldn't be late; six-year-old Hatake Kakashi was never late.

I splashed cold water on my face and dressed in my black shirt and shinobi pants and buckled my weapons pouch to my thigh before walking out the door to the training grounds. I did happen to pass by my father and Naru training and winced when I saw they were doing cool downs, which was just my father's way of saying combinations.

I watched as Naru got into the rhythm of punching, kicking, and dodging. The way she was doing it reminded me of a dancer. I shook my head at that thought before racing toward my training ground. I was going to be late if I kept thinking like that.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I was panting heavily once we finished the combinations and sensei hadn't even broken a sweat. I gathered oxygen into my lungs to ask my first question since early this morning. "What now sensei?"

He eye-smiled at me and I was struck by the resemblance between him and Kakashi. "We are now going to work on your basics." He walked over to the edge of the training ground and picked up a bag I hadn't seen him with before and pulled out two bento boxes. I felt like I could hug the man at that moment and watched as he sat down and patted the ground beside him. "Sit here Naru. It's time we took a break, I can't have you passing out from hunger."

I crossed my legs and sat beside him and took the box from his outstretched hand. "Naru, what is chakra?"

I answered from memory and opened the box. "Chakra is our life-force and it fuels the body and sustains it in order for it to function properly." I used a chopstick to pick up a piece of meat.

"Good to hear that you can memorize from a textbook. No Naru, what does chakra mean to you?"

I blinked and thought about his question. "Chakra is, well, it's umm."

Sakumo-sensei held up a hand to silence me. "Close your eyes Naru and let your senses go. Can you feel the chakra's of the organisms around you?"

I let my senses go and dropped my focus; I could sense the living beings around us; from the animals in the forest to the training ninjas in the other training fields. "Yes, I can."

"You were right in your explanation of chakra Naru, it is our life force and it does sustain us, but it is so much more than that. Chakra can be your best friend or worst enemy, but at the same time we can't live without it. Chakra is the binding force that all of our lives revolve around. Without the living chakra in our bodies we couldn't perform the jutsu that make us ninja."

I opened my eyes to look into his. "Sensei what does this have to do with relearning the basic skills?"

He took a bite from his own box and looked down at me. "Everything Naru, if you don't understand chakra how can you ever learn to control it?"

I nodded to show him I understood and after we had finished eating he gave me his hand and pulled me to my feet. "I'm going to let you think over my question about chakra, but for now we'll work on basic taijutsu."

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I got to the training ground seconds before Minato-sensei did and of course he teased me about Naru. "So Kakashi, how did you know that girl? What's her name? She's awfully pretty for a six year old."

I glared at him. "I met her in the park, her name's Uzu Naru and that's a little creepy that you think a six year old is pretty."

I grinned in victory as he instantly shut his mouth, but then I saw that same mischievous look in his eye that Naru got when she was planning something. "Okay, 'kashi-kun, be that way. Today instead of training we are going to take a mission."

"What kind of mission sensei?"

His blue eyes twinkled as he answered. "We, well actually you, are going to catch the cat, Tora-chan. Apparently she ran away again and needs someone to bring her back to her owner."

I backed away from him and looked for an escape; I just had to open my mouth. "But sensei, that's a D ranked mission strictly for Genin!"

"The Chunin who mans the mission's desk owes me a favor Kakashi and who cares as long as it gets done."

I groaned and followed him to the Hokage Tower, cursing the cat and wondering if possibly killing that cat would somehow change the future.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

Sakumo-sensei showed me the basic Taijutsu steps; then critiqued my own mirror actions. "No Naru, your right foot needs to be at an angle or you are never going to get the spin you need to complete the kick."

I started over and performed the kick. "Good girl! Again."

Sensei made sure I burned it into muscle memory before he let me go to the next one. We made it through the basic steps before he stopped me. "I'm not expecting you to learn it all today, this is just an introduction, but you are doing amazing. Now let's move onto Genjutsu."

I groaned out loud and he looked back at me. "Complaining already?"

"No sir, I'm just bad at Genjutsu."

He chuckled. "Well I'll see about that."

Thirty minutes later I was looking at him again and he was shaking his head in disbelief. "Remind me never to underestimate you when you say you are bad at something. Sorry Naru, but that was just pathetic." I glared at him. "Okay, now we will do Ninjutsu."

I grinned, my favorite part. I gathered my chakra and produced a Kage no Bunshin. Sensei walked around it before turning back to me. "Impressive, but you've put way too much chakra into it. Next order of business will be working on that lack of control you have." He pointed to the tree. "Climb it and when you get to the top, I'll give you further instructions."

I gathered the chakra into my feet and was reminded of the first time Kakashi had taught the team this very same technique. I made it up the tree about halfway before I felt myself slipping. I landed hard on my feet before racing back up the tree. I finally made it up the tree about an hour later and yelled to alert my sensei. "Good job Naru, now come down here."

I walked back down the tree and stood in front of him. "Now you are going to walk on water, using the same principle, but this time it is different because the water is moving. The chakra flow you give off must be a controlled amount." He walked on the water before me and motioned for me to do the same. I gingerly stuck one foot onto to the water and watched it sink slightly before bringing my other foot off land.

It was no surprise to me that I fell into the freezing water. I surfaced to hear him laughing at me and I sighed before pulling myself onto the bank. "I'll get it, wait and see sensei."

Slowly but surely I was walking on water again. Sensei was proud, but then he got that same look in his eye that I was coming to hate. "Now you will climb the tree again and jump to the water, try not to fall in, it's cold."

I sighed as I made my way up the tree. All the other stuff had been easy, I had learned that before, but this was going to take some time; and it did. The sun was low in the sky when sensei called me down and I still hadn't gotten it all the way. "You can try that again tomorrow, now we are going to do the fun stuff."

I panted and checked my chakra supplies, yep they were almost depleted. "What are we going to go now?"

He took out a kunai, sliced his thumb open and performed the seals for summoning. I watched as three giant wolves stood before me, alert and still. Two sported identical brown fur while the other's was as white as snow. He ran a hand down the closest one's back before speaking. "We are going to play prey."

"What do you mean prey?"

He grinned behind that mask and twirled a kunai around his fingers. "You are going to be prey and we'll have to find you, so you better hide well, kunai marks hurt." He wasn't really going to throw that kunai at me was he? I ducked down as it soared by my head, yeah he was and he did.

I backed away and took off running, relying on everything I had learned about hiding from my younger years. I automatically counted out the trees and underneath anything; those places were just too obvious. Then I remembered something Kakashi had always told us, look underneath the underneath.

I blinked in realization, what better way to hide than in the open?

I quickly henged into a male version of myself, without the whiskers and with brown hair and green eyes, before stopping at the other training ground and kicking the training post; hopefully Sakumo-sensei would find me first and not those wolves. I continued kicking and noticed I couldn't feel sensei's chakra anymore nor could I hear the wolves running through the trees.

I slowly turned around to see sensei standing there with his arms crossed. "I have to hand it to you, that almost worked, but you can't change your smell with a henge." I sighed. I had forgotten about his sense of smell.

He looked towards the sky before speaking to me. "Okay, we have one more exercise for the day." I tilted by head to look at him. "We are going to spar."

I dropped the henge and looked at him in disbelief; I had the strangest feeling I was going to die by the end of this.

The spar started off light enough; he would punch I would dodge. Then he started moving faster and I couldn't move fast enough.

I couldn't even land a hit on him and it wasn't too long before his fist connected with my jaw. I was thrown backwards and looked up at him from the ground. "Get up Naru, we're not finished."

I got on my shaking legs and ran towards him with my fist drawn back; he simply moved and pushed the back of my head forward, which caused me to fall to the ground. I got off the ground and made the seal for Kage no Bunshin and grinned when three clones sprung up around me. They attacked at the same time, but Sakumo-sensei simply spun his foot around and connected with all three of them, destroying them instantly.

He came towards me again. "Show me your bloodlimit Naru."

I tried to catch my breath and groaned as I realized I had wasted my chakra and gotten nothing accomplished and now he wanted to see Kyuubi's chakra. I watched as he raced towards me and I tried to dodge, but all of a sudden he was behind me. My arms were pulled behind my back and he had placed a kunai at my neck before whispering in my ear. "You are dead."

He let go and I fell to my knees, all of the day's training hitting me at once. I panted and looked up at him as he stood in front of me. "Do you want to quit Naru?"

I stood on my shaking legs and looked at him. "No," and I gathered the red charka from deep inside my body and watched as it swirled around me.

From the look in sensei's eyes I knew he was interested, but before I could get anything accomplished chakra exhaustion hit me and I collapsed into darkness. I was vaguely aware of him catching me before I hit the ground.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo picked up his new student and was amazed at how well she did today. He had watered down the training to suit her age, but it had still been hard. The best thing was that she didn't give up and, with the exception of a few glares, she hadn't complained.

He was going to enjoy training her. He walked with her in his arms to the hospital so she could get the treatment for her exhaustion, then he walked to the Hokage Tower to give his assessment to the Hokage about her skills. He pondered the girl as he walked the many steps to the Hokage's office. That red chakra of hers was powerful and almost demonic in nature, but wasn't his own white chakra the same way? He made it to the office, knocked on the door and was allowed to enter by a masked ANBU.

"Sakumo, how did it go?"

Sakumo pulled down his mask and looked at his leader. "Tell me more about this bloodlimit of hers."

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I was going to develop a permanent twitch in my eye if the stupid cat didn't stop scratching me.

I gladly handed the monster to her owner and glared at Minato-sensei. He was getting pay back for this one.

"Well 'kashi, we need to go get those scratch marks of yours looked at, don't want you to get an infection do we?"

I didn't answer him and just walked with him to the hospital for my minor wounds. Why he wanted me to go to the hospital for scratches just further proved my point that he was being annoying on purpose. He knew how much I hated the hospital. I was passing through the halls when I felt a familiar chakra in one of the rooms. "Naru?"

Minato-sensei looked at me strangely before looking into the opened door of said hospital room. "Look, your little friend is here."

I ignored him and walked into the room to see Naru. My father had done a number on her if the scratches and bruises were any indication. I wondered if she had passed his test. Then I shook my head, of course she did, the stubborn girl would work herself to death before she accepted defeat.

I pulled the cover over her and walked back out to sensei. Maybe this whole changing the future thing might be easier than I thought.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Hours later Minato is sitting on his front porch when a figure appeared in his yard.

Minato smiled behind his cup of coffee and looked towards his friend. "Sakumo, what do I owe this visit to?"

Sakumo greeted his friend before sitting on the steps. "It's about Kakashi."

"Hmm, what about him?"

Sakumo looked toward the darkening sky before answering. "Have you noticed anything different about him lately?"

"Other than the fact that he's getting a mouth on him? No."

Sakumo smiled. "He takes that after his mother. No, it's just that yesterday he called me daddy. He hasn't called me that in a year and he has this look in his eye. You know, the same one broken shinobi get right before they commit suicide. And then sometimes he looks at me like he can't believe I'm there. Minato, last night he cried and held me so tightly, like he was afraid I was going to leave again." Minato looked at Sakumo and he saw the concern his friend had for his son. "I don't know what to do Minato. I'm afraid he's going down a dark and lonely path."

Minato thought deeply before answering. "Spend time with him Sakumo. I know it's hard with the number of missions we've had to take lately, but it would do both of you good."

"I know it would Minato, but with war on the horizon, and now I'm taking a student, it could be impossible to get away."

Minato looked thoughtful before breaking out in a grin. "Send the girl to me. I'll train her for a little bit while you and Kakashi get back on the same page."

Sakumo grinned at his friend. "Thanks Minato, I owe you one."

"Hey what are friends for?


	4. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

The next morning Sakumo and Kakashi walked to Konoha's Hospital to retrieve Naru, according to Sakumo's meeting with the Third, Naru held a bloodlimit that not only increased her healing ability, but gave her a second set of chakra reserves.

These reserves were different from her natural blue chakra in many ways. The chakra was bright red in color and she could only call on it when her own blue chakra was completely drained or in times of extreme distress. Sakumo shook his head, something told him this girl was going to be trouble, but as he watched his son walk a little faster than usual, he had a feeling Naru was also going to be a blessing in disguise. Never had Sakumo seen his son more eager to go to the hospital.

"Slow down Kakashi, she'll still be there when we get there."

Sakumo grinned as he watched a faint blush creep over the top of his son's mask, "I don't know what you are talking about dad."

"Sure you don't 'kashi, sure you don't." Sakumo just smiled to himself as they finally made it to the hospital and went to Naru's room, after they retrieved her they would have to take the girl to buy some clothes because she couldn't keep wearing Kakashi's old clothes. The Hokage had given him an allowance for Naru until she started making money from missions.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I walked slightly ahead of my father as we walked to the hospital, I was trying not to seem like I was in a hurry, but I was. Naru was my partner and I knew how much she hated to be left alone at the hospital overnight.

I felt the blush rise on my cheeks at the undertone in my father's words, why was everyone so determined for me to have feelings for Naru? I mentally shook my head, I cared for her because she was my comrade and friend; nothing more than that plus it would have been inappropriate because she had been my student.

I thought about those words for a moment before the voice in the back of my head betrayed me by pointing out that we were no longer teacher and student and that we were the same age. I shrugged those thoughts off; I was six and had no desire to be in a relationship and besides what would be the point of being in a relationship at six-years-old? I sighed and pushed those thoughts away as we entered Naru's room and I saw her sitting on the bed looking out the window.

Her eyes brightened as she saw us come in, "Hey you two!" We greeted her back, "Am I free to leave now?"

I watched my father lean against the wall before answering her, "Well I would say you can, but we might want to get you cleared by a medic-nin first." Naru nodded and dad left the room to get a medic-nin.

I walked closer to her bed and eye-smiled at her, "Over did it?"

She groaned, "Your father is a slave driver, have you ever played prey?"

I laughed at her, "Yeah, once or twice."

She shook her head, "And that whole "conditioning training" thing? I thought my legs were going to fall off after I did all of those squats."

"Yeah, you'll feel that later today."

She glared at me, "Thanks Kakashi, thanks, how can you be so nonchalant about the training?"

"Because in the long run it will make you a stronger ninja and we can accomplish our mission."

She looked at the window and pouted, "I don't know how we are going to accomplish our mission if I'm dead."

I laughed at her again as the medic-nin came into the room to check her over. "Well Naru you are free to be released to your sensei, just try not to overdo it next time."

She jumped off the bed and winced from the soreness in her muscles, as dad walked back into the room, "Let's go you two, we have to get Naru some clothes and we have to get both of you new forehead protectors."

I blinked in confusion; then remembered that I had lost mine and hadn't worn it yesterday because I didn't have a spare one. I shook my head, this whole time travel thing was messing with me, how did I miss not having my forehead protector?

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

My eyes widened, our forehead protectors had been lost in the transition between time periods. I followed behind Sakumo-sensei and Kakashi, and wondered if it was bothering him as much as it was me that I had forgotten about such an important part of a ninja's uniform?

"Sakumo-sensei, how are we going to get my clothes? I don't have any money on me."

He turned around and looked at me and smiled softly, "Don't worry Naru; you are well taken care of. Ah, here's the store."

I looked at the store and remembered it from the future Konoha, the couple that owned it had always been kind to me while I was growing up. I walked in and saw a much younger male store owner, instead of the white haired, wrinkled old man with a permanent limp; I saw a dark haired average looking young adult with no limp in his step. The only thing that stayed the same was the kind look in his eyes, "Sakumo-san and little Kakashi, welcome. What can I do for you today?"

Sakumo-sensei pushed me in front of him and into the man's vision before I could tease Kakashi about being called 'little'. "Kaito-san I would like to introduce you to Naru, my student."

Kaito squatted down to my level and smiled softly, "Hi, I'm Sasaki Kaito."

I bowed slightly to him, "I'm Uzu Naru."

He stood back up and looked at Sakumo, "She's adorable," I rolled my eyes at his comment, "Now what are you looking for?"

"She needs clothes for training and for when she is off duty. Then we'll get weapons and other stuff like that."

Kaito nodded before grabbing my arm and dragging me with him, "I'll let my girlfriend help her choose her clothes; girls are so much harder to please than boys."

I soon found myself being pushed gently into a young woman with blonde hair and the same brown eyes as the old lady; wow her hair was originally blonde? "Come along dear, Kaito told me that you are looking for training clothes and for civilian clothes."

I nodded and her eyes widened, "I'm so sorry how rude of me, I'm Shimizu Usagi."

I smiled at her, "It's okay Usagi-san; I'm Uzu Naru."

Usagi nodded and dragged me to the back of the store, and to my horror the first outfit she picked out was pink, it would be a cold day in Hell before I ever wore that hideous color. I hissed at the material in her hands and heard her chuckle, "Just making sure what kind of girl I was dealing with. I think I have just the thing for you Naru."

I watched then as she took me to shelves that had more suitable colors for ninjas, like blacks, deep reds, navy blues, and dark greens. I even spotted a dark orange, which wasn't as suitable color for a ninja, but it was my favorite and could be worn during training. I grabbed a couple of black shinobi style pants, with lots of pockets, and some tan shorts. Usagi grabbed a couple of different colored shirts and handed them to me; then she led me to the dressing rooms so I could try on the clothes I had gotten, "You just stay in there Naru and I'll bring you some more clothes."

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I resisted the urge to tap my foot against the ground as we waited for Naru; the bad thing was that she had only been gone a few minutes.

Dad had noticed my impatience, but hadn't commented on it, and I had a feeling it was because he was feeling the same way. I figured it was just a guy thing; we only got new clothes whenever we absolutely had to and even then we may spend ten minutes picking out what we want and we never "tried" anything on. With girls it was different though; I just hoped we weren't in here all day. "Kakashi, let's go look at weapons while we wait."

I silently thanked him and followed behind to go to a more "manlier" part of the store.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I was changing clothes fairly quickly, I had two males waiting on me and as a female I knew men where impatient when it came to shopping.

The black pants were fitting fairly well so where the tan shorts, but I wasn't crazy about the shirts. "Usagi-san, Can you bring me some fishnet tops?" I heard her say yes and waited for the material to fly over the top of the door. I caught them and put one on, then put on the dark orange shirt.

The fishnet sleeves came to my elbows and the bottom part was longer than my shirt. I looked at my reflection before putting the black pants on, I liked it, but something was missing. Then I remembered what would complete my look, "Can you bring me some black fingerless gloves?"

Seconds later a pair dropped into my arms and I put them on, and stood back and looked in the mirror, my new look was complete. The final touch was when I pulled my blonde hair back into a pony tail, leaving my bangs alone, my forehead protector would kept them out of my eyes. I walked out of the dressing room carrying the clothes I was getting and heard a gasp, "Well I believe you've found a look for you."

I grinned at her and she held up three more garments that better not be what I thought they were. "Naru, please try on these dresses."

Yep, exactly what I thought they were, "Usagi, I'm not a dress girl."

"Naru, you have to have a least a couple of dresses in case of a special occasion." I glared at her but took the dresses from her, one blue and the other two different shades of green; at least they weren't pink. Surprisingly I liked the dresses once I put them one, they were simple, but pretty on me. If Kakashi saw this I would never live it down, Naru in a dress? I shook my head and pushed the dresses to the bottom of my pile.

Usagi took the pile of clothes from me, "I'll put these on the counter and we'll ring up what you are wearing already."

I nodded; I had kept the orange shirt and black pants on. "Do you know where my sensei is?"

Kaito smiled, "Yes, they are in the back of the store getting weapons." I thanked him and soon found both of them looking at the katana section.

"Whatcha' looking at?"

Sakumo-sensei turned around and looked at my outfit before smiling, "Katana, now that you are through we have to pick up your kunai, shuriken, and a weapon of your choice." I was excited after I heard the last thing; I had always wanted to learn kenjutsu.

I walked past the exploding tags and began trying to decide what I wanted.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I chuckled when I saw Naru; orange had always been her favorite color, at least it wasn't an orange jumpsuit. I looked at the outfit she was wearing, black shinobi pant, dark orange shirt with what looked like a long sleeved fishnet shirt underneath and black fingerless gloves, her choice was definitely better than that jumpsuit.

I needed to stop thinking that, Naru did eventually outgrow her jumpsuit after she returned from training with Jiraiya and it wasn't fair to compare her to how she acted when she was young. I watched her eyes grow big when dad told her to pick a weapon of her choice; she took off down the aisle looking. "Kakashi."

I blinked and looked at him, "Yes sir?"

He patted my head, "I said go pick you a weapon out; I'm going to teach you in kenjutsu with Naru."

My eyes widened, in the other time period my father never taught me kenjutsu because he was always on a mission, had him becoming a Jounin-sensei changed the future that dramatically?

I nodded and went in the opposite direction of Naru.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo watched as the two six-year-olds walked slowly down the aisles, he was a firm believer in fate and destiny and he believed those two would pick the weapons they were destined to have.

He watched as Kakashi walked by the katanas and stopped before running his eyes up and down the shelf. Sakumo was originally going to give Kakashi his tanto, but something told him Kakashi needed to make a name for himself and try to step out of his father's shadow.

Kakashi's small hand lifted and grabbed a black katana from its case. Sakumo's eyes widened as he realized what katana his son had picked up, there was no mistaking the _Hanshou_. Kakashi raised the katana and swung it, Sakumo felt his heart pound as he watched the blade pulse with his son's chakra.

The black blade against the white chakra stood out and looked so beautiful and so deadly at the same time. Sakumo shook his head, _Hanshou_ was a tricky blade to master; it was a lot like his tanto, but the blade did so much more than just channel chakra. Sakumo smiled, his son would go far with that blade.

He turned his attention away from Kakashi and found Naru staring intently at another katana.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

"Kit, pick that blade up."

I jumped as I heard Kyuubi talk to me, "Where have you been fur ball?"

I heard him growl inside my head, "I'm still recovering from the time travel and from yesterday, just listen to me and take that katana."

I looked at the silver katana, "What's so special about it?"

"You know the tanto that Sakumo uses?"

I mentally nodded, "That katana has the same properties as that, but it does so much more. The only catch is that the katana has to choose you to wield it."

"How do I know if it accepts me?"

"It will react to your chakra, and pulse if you are suitable for it." I reached my hand down and watched as my fingers twitch before touching it and pulling it out of its case. I ran my finger down the blunt side and smiled as I swung the katana and it pulsed, but it was not my regular chakra, it pulsed with Kyuubi's chakra before pulsing again with my own.

I was amazed at how right it felt in my hands, "Kyuubi, what is it called?"

" _Tsukiakari_ is the katana's name. Treat it well kit."

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo glanced surprisingly at the katana that Naru picked up; _Tsukiakari_ was an interesting choice for her.

He smiled as he watched Kakashi and Naru show each other their weapons, those two katanas, _Tsukiakari_ and _Hanshou,_ were not legendary blades, because they were picky. Anyone can wield a blade, but with blades like his and those two, you had to be compatible to the blade in order for your chakra to be considered useable to the blade itself.

Sakumo closed his eyes in thought, there was another interesting thing about those blades; they were forged together and usually wielded by partners or by lovers. Sakumo snorted as he thought about the last thing, those two were far from lovers, but they could be trained together as partners. He smirked, he was going to have to talk to Minato about this when he got back from that three week mission, it was about time Kakashi got a permanent teammate.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I looked at mine and Naru's katanas, they were identical except in color, mine being black and hers being silver. "Come on you two, we have to go pay and then we'll go get something to eat and the forehead protectors."

I turned to my dad and picked up the case and read the inscription on the side, " _Hanshou_ " I wondered if that was the name of the katana, I didn't have time to dwell on it, because both of them where already at the counter and checking out.

I gave mine to dad and eye-smiled at him, he ruffled my hair and the three of us went to eat at the barbeque place. After we left the barbeque restaurant, we ended up getting our forehead protectors from the Academy before heading home.

Dad stopped by my room later that night and sat beside my bed, "'kashi, are you sure you are alright?"

I nodded, "Yes dad, I'm fine." I saw he wanted to say more to me, but he didn't.

He stopped and pulled the covers up over me like he did when I was younger. I closed my eyes only to open them again as I felt him place a kiss on my forehead, "Good night Kakashi."

I sat up instantly, "Dad wait!"

He stopped and turned around, I picked at the cover as I spoke, "Will you promise me something."

I lifted my eyes to see him gently close the door and come back to sit beside my bed, "I'll try 'kashi."

I stared into his eyes, "Will you promise me that you won't leave me alone."

I saw the confusion in his eyes as he answered, "Kakashi where is all of this coming from?"

I knew I had to think fast to give him an explanation, so I used what I knew, "It's just that I've heard rumors about there being a war with Iwa, and if there is you'll have to leave for longer periods of time and I'm afraid you won't come home."

Even though I thought sounding like a scared child would be hard, it wasn't because deep down, I was terrified that he would leave me again and I couldn't bear to live through that pain a second time. I tensed as he scooped me into his arms, "Kakashi, I haven't always been fair to you. I entered you into the Academy at a young age because you were a genius and I knew you would excel. You've made me proud by becoming the youngest person to become and Genin and then a Chunin, but I forget sometimes that you are still a child. I'm trying Kakashi to make this right; I can't bear to see that look in your eye." I blinked up at him, "I know you don't notice it but I do, and I'm going to try and take it away. You and I are due a little father/son bonding trip, as soon as I get Naru settled into a training regime."

I placed my head against his chest and listened to his heartbeat, I had wanted to do this for so long; I had missed him so much. He ran his hand through my hair before speaking again, "I promise Kakashi that as long as I have breath in my body, I will return home to you." I wrapped my arms around him and tried to believe him, but the nagging voice in the back of my head told me he had promised the same thing once before, I shook the thought away and focused on the matter at hand.

I had to save my father, even if it meant changing the outcome of the future.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo held Kakashi till his breathing evened out, signaling that he had fallen asleep; he gently placed Kakashi in the bed and tucked him in. He ran a hand through the soft silver hair before walking out the door and whispering to his sleeping son, "I love you Kakashi."

He closed the door and walked down the hall to his student's room and peeked in. Naru was sprawled across the bed and had kicked the covers onto the floor. Sakumo grinned before going into the room and pulling the covers back over her body. "Good night Naru."

He then walked to his bedroom and laid down to sleep.

A week passed since Naru had first meet Hatake Sakumo and Sakumo was quickly learning that his student had a mean streak in her, especially when it came to his son. Sakumo just couldn't wrap his mind around why Kakashi irked her so much or why she enjoyed making him squirm.

Well now that he actually thought about it, they treated each other the same way, relentless teasing and pranks had become the norm at the Hatake household, not that Sakumo was complaining. He enjoyed their competition, and it was comforting to see Kakashi get along with someone his own age.

Sakumo sighed into his coffee; with Kakashi being a ninja it had been hard for him to make friends his own age and the other Chunin were so much older than him that they had nothing in common. The other six-year-olds wanted nothing to do with him either, but then Naru came along and was bringing out a side of Kakashi that Sakumo had never seen before.

Their competition was making training very interesting as well, with Minato gone on a mission, Kakashi was training with them and Naru refused to be bested by him and a lot of the times she gave him a run for his money. Sakumo honestly believed that if Kakashi hadn't already been trained by him, then Naru would have been victorious a couple of times.

He looked at the clock, they had to be at the Hokage Tower in two hours to see if the Hokage had gotten Naru another home, personally Sakumo wanted her to stay with them, she was no harm and it was nice having a little bit of sunshine in the house. Sakumo got up and woke up Kakashi and told him that he was going to go on to the Hokage Tower and for him to get Naru up.

Kakashi nodded and Sakumo left, feeling like he was missing something very important.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

When dad woke me up this morning I put plan 'get revenge' into action.

When Naru was younger she had taken to pulling pranks to get attention and as she grew up she no longer had to rely on pranks for that attention. That didn't mean she stopped pulling pranks though, in fact that was how we completed our missions. I would help her plan the pranks out, we would set them up and we would get the mission done, it was effective and strangely fun.

Well now that we are both stuck here and have to keep our knowledge a secret we needed a way to relieve stress, so we turned to our old prank war as Tsunade had affectionately called it. Naru had gotten me first with itching powder in my bed, so I put crickets in hers.

It is childish, but it also helps train our stealth skills, which are nowhere near the level they were at. The last prank had been pulled by Naru yesterday morning when she set my alarm clock to go off at 3:00 in the morning and changed all the clocks in the house to read 5:00, I was getting ready for training before I looked out the window and noticed how dark it was outside.

I'm still trying to figure out how she changed the clock in my room; because she went to bed before I did and the only way she could have gotten into my room was through the window because I started locking my door when we started our war.

I grinned behind my mask as I swiftly opened the door to Naru's room and tip toed in. Silly girl, hadn't she learned to lock her door yet? I silently walked to her closet and opened it, freezing when the door hinge creaked, and slowly opening it up.

I smiled as my eyes looked at the clothes that where neatly hung on the hangers, and then my eyes caught exactly what I wanted. I grabbed all of the shirts, shorts, mesh tops, and pants, leaving only a blue dress. If there was one thing Naru hated worse than the color pink it had to be wearing a dress. I chuckled evilly as I left her room with my treasure in hand, I was one evil little boy.

I went into the laundry room and made sure all spare clothing where taken out of there and hidden, I had to make sure I covered all my bases or she would find a way out of this prank. I had a pretty good size stash of clothing, it included my own, my father's, and hers, because I wouldn't put it past her to wear mine if it meant to get out of wearing a dress. I wondered where I could stash all of this, because I had to make sure she didn't find it. I knew my room was out of the question and so was my father's room, but then I got a great idea.

I knew where the key to dad's study was and Naru couldn't get in there without the key. I raced quietly to the kitchen and used my chakra to walk up the side of the refrigerator in order to get the key. I landed softly on the floor and dragged my load to the study door. With a soft click the door was opened and I pushed the clothes into the middle of the room and locked the door. I jiggled the door knob one good time to make sure it was locked and placed the key in my weapons pouch, now she really wasn't getting in there.

I went back into her room and set an alarm clock that would go off exactly thirty minutes before we had to meet with the Hokage;

I walked out the door and smiled to myself, revenge was sweet.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

A very annoying buzzing sound woke me up and when I looked at the alarm clock, I realized I only had thirty minutes to get to the meeting with the Hokage.

I jumped out of bed and raced to my closet and the sight I was met with ran my blood cold. I started going through the room, turning over boxes and pulling out drawers, I turned back to the closet; the only thing in there was that blue dress Usagi wanted me to have.

I twitched and knew exactly who was behind this, Kakashi. I was going to kill him, screw messing up the time line.

I chewed my lip and raced to the laundry room, maybe he had forgotten about the dirty clothes, but when I got in there all I found was a single sock. I wanted to pound my head against the wall, but I had to hand it to him, he was good. I walked back into my room, tempted to wear my nightclothes, but looking at the oversized shirt I was using as a nightgown, it would be less embarrassing to wear the dress.

I finally accepted defeat and put the blue monstrosity on; I peeked at myself in the mirror, it wasn't that bad. At least it wasn't lacy or anything too girly, it was just a simple blue sun dress. I was still killing the scarecrow though. I looked at the clock; if I didn't hurry I was going to be late, so I tied my forehead protector tightly and ran out the door.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo and Kakashi stood before the Hokage waiting for Naru to show up, she wasn't late yet, "Kakashi, you did wake her up right?"

Kakashi eye-smiled at his father, "Sure did!"

Sakumo raised a silver eyebrow at this; his son was way too cheerful to not be up to something. The Hokage then asked Sakumo how Kakashi and Naru were getting along, but before Sakumo could answer the door busted open to reveal his very angry looking student in a blue dress.

He blinked, didn't she hate wearing dresses? Then it hit him, his son had done something to invoke the girls' wrath again. She stalked towards Kakashi, ignoring her sensei, the Hokage, and the various ANBU in the room, "Where are my clothes Hatake!"

Kakashi blinked innocently at her, "Don't know Naru-chan. I don't wear them you should learn to take better care of your things or they will spontaneously change, if you catch my drift."

She took a deep breath before continuing, "Oh it is on scarecrow!"

The Hokage cleared his throat and Naru jumped to attention as did Kakashi. "Now that you are all here, we have to discuss your living arrangement Naru. I have unfortunately been unable to find a suitable home for you, so I would like to ask Sakumo if she can stay in your home until she reached Jounin rank."

Sakumo nodded, "I'm fine with that; it would be easier to train her that way."

The Hokage smiled before turning to Naru, "Do you have any objections Naru?"

She glared at Kakashi before speaking, "I won't as soon as this meeting is over."

The Hokage shuffled the papers on his desk, before handing Sakumo a scroll and dismissing them all. Naru turned to Kakashi and smiled sweetly, Kakashi's eyes widened and he took a step back, "Oh Kakashi-kun?"

"Yes Naru-chan?"

She tapped her foot before looking him in the eye and taking out a kunai, "I'm giving you a five second head start before I kill you."

Kakashi laughed nervously, "Now Naru it was just a harmless prank."

"Four seconds Hatake." Kakashi gulped before racing out of the Hokage's Office with a trail of white chakra falling behind him, it wasn't that far after that Naru raced after him, her own red chakra trailing behind her.

The Hokage and Sakumo could hear her yelling from their spots, "SCARECROW I'M GOING TO KILL YOU!"

Sakumo shook his head and looked at the Hokage, "See they get along swimmingly."

The Hokage just chuckled and then winced as he heard flesh hit tree.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I picked myself off of the ground and looked at Naru; I was tempted to laugh at her, but I actually wanted to see my seventh birthday this time around. "Naru, I'm sorry I messed with your clothes, but you shouldn't have changed the times on the clocks."

I watched as the anger on her face disappeared and a smile took its place, "I will admit that you got me good 'kashi!"

I laughed and took the outstretched hand, "Let's get home and I'll give you back your clothes."

She nodded, "Where did you hide them?"

"In dad's study, it was the only place I knew you couldn't get into."

She smiled, "I admire your pranking skills and your dedication."

We returned home and I put all the clothes back before doing a load of laundry. I found Naru sitting at the table with a thoughtful look on her face. "A penny for your thoughts?"

She grinned at me, "How about we make a deal. For one ultimate prank, let's join forces."

I narrowed my eyes, "What are we talking?"

She grinned before answering, "Revenge"

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

Kakashi got a thoughtful look on his face before asking, "Revenge on whom?"

"Kakashi it's someone who deserves to be pranked by us at least once, and I think it's time to get him back for the way he woke me up the first day of training."

Kakashi's eyes widened when he realized who I was talking about, "Dad?"

I nodded, "The one and the same. Are you game?"

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I let that question sink into my mind, was I game? I smirked on one hand this could wind up back firing on us, but on the other hand I was sure it could help us. I grinned before answering and sealing my father's fate, "I'm game."

Naru and I sat down at the kitchen table and planned out ultimate prank, it might be the last one we ever do so we had to make it big. Later that night after dad had gone to bed I snuck out and got the necessary supplies and when I got back Naru planted them.

I smiled to myself as I lay back in bed and waited for morning.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo stretched as he got up the next morning bright and early; he got out of bed and took a hot shower, taking the time to make sure he washed his hair to get the dirt out from the previous day's activities.

When he was finished Sakumo walked into the kitchen to see two six-year-olds trying their hardest not to laugh. "What are you two up to?"

Kakashi shook his head, refused to meet his father's eye and went back to eating his cereal, and Naru well she just continued eating her cereal and ignored him. Sakumo froze, they were both acting very strange, was there something on his face?

Sakumo went into the living room to check his face in the mirror, when he had gotten out of the shower he hadn't bothered to look into the mirror so maybe he had missed something. Sakumo peered into the mirror and stopped cold.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I looked at Kakashi and gave the signal to leave, we both tried to quietly tip toe out the back door, but before we made it far enough away from the kitchen a shout boomed through the house.

"HATAKE KAKASHI AND UZU NARU YOU TWO ARE IN SO MUCH TROUBLE! WHEN I GET MY HANDS ON YOU, YOU WILL WISH I HAD NEVER BEEN BORN!"

I looked into Kakashi's eyes, "I think we should run now Naru."

"Yeah I agree." We both took off, but trust me we didn't get far.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

If you just happened to travel by the training grounds that day, you would see a very unusual sight.

The once silver haired White Fang of Konoha now sported dark green hair and was torturing, well training, two unfortunate six-year-olds. Said six-year-olds where now doing one armed push-ups, "You two better hope this comes out before tomorrow or everything you've done today will seem like a walk in the park compared to what I have planned for you."

The blonde haired girl answered him between panting, "Sensei the box said it comes out in three washes, we made sure it wasn't permanent, we even tried a little out on Kakashi's hair."

Sakumo just grunted, "Keep going you two, I'm not tired of watching you yet."

Let's just say Naru and Kakashi learned a very important lesson that day, the White Fang of Konoha did not like anyone messing with his hair and he had a slightly sadistic side when provoked.

The Hokage just chuckled as he looked into his crystal ball at the training ground the trio where at.

Naru and Kakashi where going to be interesting to watch grow up; the man rubbed his tired eyes before watching their training continues, at least Sakumo would not be bored living with them or with training Naru.

* * *

Tsukiakari- moonlight

Hanshou- midnight


	5. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo ended up washing his hair five times that night and once more the next morning just to make sure the green was gone.

He stood in front of the mirror and towel dried his hair from his sixth shower before carefully making sure every hint of green was gone and his natural color was back. Even though he was angry with those two, he couldn't stop his lips from twitching into a smile whenever he thought about how they got him. Shaking his hair one more time before combing and pulling it back, he walked out of the bathroom, dressed in his uniform for the day and went down the stairs.

He stopped at the bookshelf and took out a scroll; it was the same one the Hokage had given him the other day. Sakumo smiled gently as he looked at the name on the scroll before rolling it up and heading towards the kitchen. Kakashi was going to have a fit when he found out about this little secret; Sakumo just wished the circumstances were different.

Sakumo entered into the kitchen where the still sore six-year-olds were sitting and waiting for his instructions for the day. He walked to the counter and put the scroll there. Sakumo liked to believe that he had taught them a little lesson in respect yesterday. "Consider yourselves very lucky the color came out."

Kakashi looked at him innocently before replying. "I would consider myself lucky if I were you dad, the only reason we didn't use pink was because the store was out."

Naru let out a strangled giggle at his words and Sakumo raised a silver eyebrow. Obviously his son needed a refresher course in who was in charge.

"Want to run that by me again, Kakashi?"

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

Did I just really talk to my dad like that? I watched his form to see how he would take my comment. He had leaned against the wall and crossed his arms across his chest. I couldn't help but notice the way his steel grey eyes were narrowed

My father always had a particular way to handle my punishments. He never yelled when he punished me, nor did he ever strike me, but he took this tone of voice I dreaded to hear. It usually dripped with disappointment and hurt me worse than if he would have yelled in my face or hit me. I'm not going to lie, most six-year-olds wouldn't care that much about their father's tone of voice, but I looked up to this man so much that it hurt to disappoint him.

"Want to run that by me again, Kakashi?"

Yep, there was that tone. I lowered my eyes before answering. "No sir."

I still had my eyes trained on the table when he walked up to me and lifted my chin so that I was staring into his eyes again. "Naru, go to the training ground. We'll be there shortly." I heard Naru's light footsteps run out of the room and soon the front door slammed closed. Dad sat in the chair beside me and reached to the top of my mask and pulled it down.

"Kakashi we have to talk about this mouth you are getting on you." I slumped back in my chair and pouted, hoping to get some sympathy. "Sorry kid, that's not going to work this time." I dropped the pout and he continued. "I'm not getting on to you Kakashi; I just want you to be aware of what you say."

I nodded and he spoke again, this time with a lighter tone. "Especially when you go on this B-ranked mission you have coming up."

I blinked at him. "What B-ranked mission?"

He got up and took a scroll from the counter. "The Hokage gave me this the other day at the meeting and asked me to look over it. I had talked to him earlier that morning about taking a little vacation for a week or two with you. He said that with the current Iwa situation it would be close to impossible for him to let us go, but he said we could go on this mission together."

I excitedly took the scroll from him. This would be my first B-ranked mission as a Chunin and, unlike the first time, I would be on the mission with my dad. It was strange to feel excited about my first B-ranked mission and at the same time have memories of multiple higher ranked missions.

I opened the scroll and read the mission contents while dad leaned against the counter watching me. The mission started off pretty simple; we had to infiltrate a small town on the outskirts of Iwa. My eyes widened as I saw that word, 'Iwa.' The word itself brought back painful memories from the Third Great Shinobi War, a war that was soon to start.

I continued reading the report. Apparently the town of Tsuiki had been showing some very suspicious activity recently and our job was to see what they were up to. I looked up at dad as he spoke quietly. "Should be an easy mission. During the day we could spend some quality time together, while at the same time gathering information. Then at night we could see what they are up to."

I placed the scroll on the table. "What do you think they are up to dad?"

Dad looked out the window and gripped the counter. "Kakashi, the Hokage doesn't want the Jounin to tell our families yet because he doesn't want any mass hysteria, but you are a Chunin and you'll find out soon enough. In two week's time the Hokage is going to make an announcement to the entire village. Iwa has declared war on us and is, as we speak, planning to advance across Kusagakure."

This information stopped me cold; Iwa wasn't supposed to declare war for months, had we already messed with the timeline? I nodded and he continued. "The closer they get to Konohagakure the more we cannot ignore them. That's the reason Minato and I, as well as other Jounin, have been going on so many missions lately. Our spies are reporting back that they are mobilizing for battle and our mission is to find out where they are hiding and Tsuiki is a prime suspect."

"But dad, should we really be trying to spend quality time together on a mission as important as this?"

He smiled at me. "You see Kakashi, that's part of our cover. We are going in as a father and son that is there to celebrate one of the town's annual festivals, kind of like our own Cherry Blossom Festival and we have to make it convincing, which is why the Hokage wanted us to do it."

I smiled at him before speaking. "And what better way than to use an actual father/son team?"

Dad nodded and took the scroll from me. "We leave after Minato gets back. The Hokage wanted to give us enough time to plan a strategy because we are going to have to pretend to be civilians for a majority of the mission and we'll work on that plan later tonight. So how about we go meet Naru at the training grounds before she decides to prank us for making her wait?"

I grinned, pulling up my mask and followed him outside to the training grounds, wondering how the future would play out with all of these changes.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I decided that I would do my morning workout while I waited for Kakashi and Sakumo-sensei. I wondered what was taking them so long as I began stretching and lightly jogging around the training ground.

My mind was racing as I thought about my new life, which included a safe home-life. Not to mention Sakumo-sensei was an amazing cook, which meant I was not living off of ramen this time around. I smiled as I thought about my new sensei, he was nothing like I imagined.

He was a harsh and demanding teacher, but at the same time he was kind and only asked for what he knew I could do and never did he put me down if I couldn't complete an exercise. It was surprising a man that respected didn't have a huge ego, but I guess it was just a Hatake thing; Kakashi was the same way.

I closed my eyes as I jogged around the training ground and thought about the first time I met him during Team 7's introductory meeting. I had played the idiot in a lot of ways when I was younger. I mean I wasn't the brightest crayon in the box, but I always loved to read and because of my reading I had learned about the legendary Hatake Kakashi. I had him pegged to be stuck-up training fanatic who stuck by the rules, never showed emotions and was always perfect. So you can just imagine my surprise when I saw silver hair and a masked face that could only belong to the Copy Ninja. At first I thought he was going to be exactly as I imagined, but then I met him and found out a lot of my original assumptions were false.

 _Flashback….._

 _Uzumaki Naru, Uchiha Sasuke and Haruno Sakura sat in the classroom waiting patiently for their new sensei. Just as they had been doing for the last two hours._

 _Naru was pacing the floor while Sakura was trying to get Sasuke to talk to her and Sasuke was ignoring both of them. Naru silently figured he was cursing his luck being put on the same team as a fan-girl and her. It was no secret that Uchiha Sasuke and Uzumaki Naru did not like each other._

 _Naru looked at her female teammate and could sum her up in one word, fan-girl. She studied the girl for a moment; long pink hair that reeked of perfume, a too skinny figure, most likely from dieting, and a bright red colored dress that would mess with her ability to move. Of course, Naru had no right to talk about the color of the dress, orange wasn't acceptable for a ninja anyway, or so Iruka-sensei said._

 _She then turned to her 'rival,' better known as the teme. She couldn't stand his attitude or superior way of thinking. Unlike Sakura though, Naru had no idea how to describe Sasuke except frustrating._

 _Naru paced for a couple more minutes before her blue eyes spotted a dusty eraser on the chalkboard. Her eyes widened as she planned out her prank. She just found the perfect way to get back at her tardy sensei. Despite Sakura's complaining, Naru placed an eraser in-between the crack of the door and the doorframe, so when sensei opened the door, the eraser would fall onto his head. Minutes later Naru stepped back and watched as a gloved hand pushed the door open and a silver haired stranger met with a chalky eraser._

 _Naru's eyes widened and she whispered under her breath, "Copy Ninja Hatake Kakashi" before laughing at how he fell for her prank._

 _Kakashi scanned them before telling them exactly what he thought about them. "I hate you all, meet me on the roof." Kakashi then used Shunshin no Jutsu to teleport to the roof, missing the hurt look on Naru's face, the murderous one on Sakura's and the bored stare of Sasuke._

 _Naru stared at the spot the Copy Ninja once occupied. Hatake Kakashi was her teacher and all she could think about was if he was going to get her back for the prank. Numbly she walked out behind her teammates. By the time the three 12 year-olds made it to the roof, Kakashi had already made it there and was leaning against a rail on the roof looking at them. "Let's start with introductions. Likes, dislikes, hobbies, dreams, stuff like that."_

 _The pink haired girl, Sakura, questioned him. "Give us an example sensei."_

 _Kakashi brought his hand to rub his chin as he thought. "I'm Hatake Kakashi. I have some dislikes and some likes. I had a hobby once and as far as my dreams, well, that's none of your business. Your turn blondie."_

 _Naru couldn't believe the man in front of her. He only gave them his name and then he called her blondie. Naru found herself not letting go of her assumptions of him. She gritted her teeth before replying._

" _I'm Uzumaki Naru. I dislike people who hurt other people for no reason and waiting for ramen to boil. I like reading and I guess my hobby is growing plants. My dream is to become Hokage, no, to be greater than the previous Hokage's, so everyone will respect me and notice me!"_

 _Kakashi nodded his head. "Thank you Naru, pinky you're next."_

 _Naru noticed that Kakashi had noticed Sakura's glances to Sasuke and glares at her. "I'm Haruno Sakura. I like umm," she looked at Sasuke. "My hobby is….and my dream is…" She looked at Sasuke one more time before blushing and squealing. "And I hate Naru."_

 _Naru let a look of pain cross her face. Why did Sakura have to be like that? Was it too much to ask for a friend? "Thank you Sakura, boy you're next." Naru watched Sasuke's feathers get ruffled at being called 'boy' and mentally congratulated her sensei._

" _I'm Uchiha Sasuke. There are many things that I hate and only a few things I like. My ambition is to kill a certain man and rebuild my clan." Naru saw the dark look that passed quickly over Kakashi's eye and turned to stare at Sasuke herself, wondering what he was talking about._

 _End Flashback…_

I sighed as I thought about those days before Sasuke betrayed us, but at the same time I smiled.

Kakashi proved all of my original assumptions wrong, he was not stuck-up and he was not a demanding teacher. In fact, I would even dare to say he was lazy. Not to mention he never followed the whole be on time rule and the emotions he showed were not easily seen, but they were there. I found out all too well the next day that he was lazy, perverted and dead serious about protecting his teammates. I pushed those thoughts away as I saw Kakashi and Sensei come into the field. Kakashi looked happy.

I tilted my head and raced over to them. "Naru, good to see that you weren't idle while we were talking." I nodded and stood beside Kakashi. I watched as Sensei pulled out a scroll and opened it before pulling out two bokken, handing one to me and one to Kakashi. "Today we are going to start Kenjutsu training."

I looked at the wooden sword in my hand and smiled at Kakashi, returning it with his eye upturning in a U. "But first we have to warm up. Laps now!" We placed our bokken on the ground and started running. I tried to keep a little ahead of Kakashi, but he would simply run faster and keep his lead. A part of me wanted to trip him.

I was glad we were doing Kenjutsu training because that meant we were not going to do regular training. Then I heard Sakumo-sensei's teasing laughter following us. "If you two keep this speed up we may get to Kenjutsu training before lunch."

My eyes widened and turned to look at him in disbelief. Yep, Kenjutsu training did not interfere with regular training. Darn, I was going to die before I ever got to Kenjutsu training.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

Dad was right about our pace. We did finish his torturous training regimen, complete with conditioning training and a "fun" game of prey before lunch.

I sat beside a panting Naru and took the bento box from dad and handed it to her. She nodded her thanks and began eating. I copied her actions, making sure she was too engrossed in her eating to see me maskless. Dad sat across from us eating quietly before he spoke. "Naru, Kakashi and I are going on a mission in a few days and I've gotten you a replacement teacher while we are gone."

Naru nodded and looked up, curious. "Who is it sensei?"

"Kakashi's sensei, Namikaze Minato. He agreed because I was taking Kakashi away and he said he would be glad to supervise your training 'til we get back. He's a very capable Jounin and you would learn a lot from him."

Naru nodded and I pulled up my mask as I finished eating. "Yeah Naru, Sensei's great and he's excited to meet you."

She smiled brightly at both of us before finishing her bento and placing the chopsticks on top. "I'm honored and excited to meet him too. When does your mission start?"

Dad answered her. "As soon as Minato gets back from his, but I might need your help in preparation for the mission Naru." I looked quizzically at my father, as did Naru. What could he be talking about? Then he abruptly stood up, clapped his hands together and picked up his own bokken.

"Let's get started with Kenjutsu!"

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo placed Naru and Kakashi in front of each other and taught them how to hold their bokken. "You have to hold the bokken firmly in your hands, one above the other. Extend the bokken in front of you and hold it up vertically towards your opponent."

Sakumo took the time to inspect both students and adjusted their hands slightly. "Now in this position you can easily counter strike with just a flick of the wrist, now watch." Sakumo produced a clone and held his own bokken vertically and had his clone attack. Sure enough with just a flick of the wrist the clone's bokken strike was countered. "Now you guys try it."

Naru opted to be defensive first and easily countered Kakashi's strike, the same went for Kakashi. "Good. Now you have to keep your knees bent and turn your body slightly sideways, so your opponent has less area to hit and you can better protect yourself from being hit."

Sakumo demonstrated and his students mimicked him. "Okay, here's the tricky part. Place one foot in front of the other, spaced far enough where you are comfortable, but make sure one foot is facing your opponent and the other is in line with your body. This gives you the ability to be able to respond to an attack quickly."

Kakashi got it fairly easily. However, his foot wouldn't stay in line with his body, but practice would solve that. Naru on the other hand had a little trouble with her spacing, nothing that couldn't be fixed. Sakumo gently smiled and nudged her legs closer together. "You are not trying to ride a horse, Naru. Relax and get comfortable." Sakumo produced another clone to explain the next step. "And here's the fun part. Raise the bokken over your head like so, and bring it down to strike your opponent's bokken. Then raise it again and strike from the side."

Sakumo and his clone demonstrated before turning to his students. "Your turn."

Naru nervously raised her bokken and brought it down to strike Kakashi's, "Good form Naru, but put more power behind it. I promise you are not going to hurt Kakashi and if you did it's his own fault for not holding his bokken right."

Naru giggled a little before striking down firmly and causing Kakashi to grip his bokken harder. Then she connected sideways and grazed his knuckles.

"OUCH!"

Sakumo watched as his son nursed his bruised knuckles and Naru apologized. "He's fine Naru, try again and aim higher." Kakashi glared at his father before picking up his bokken and letting Naru try again.

Luckily there were no more accidents. Then it was Kakashi's turn. Sakumo watched as Kakashi got into his stance. Carefully making sure his foot was in line he struck firmly causing Naru to step back, but still keeping her bokken in place. Sakumo smiled at them both. They were fast learners and definitely eager to learn. "Now you two practice 'til your moves and form become fluid. I don't want to see any hesitation or breaks in your stances. Get to it."

Sakumo watched for the rest of the afternoon as they perfected their stances and drills. By the time the sun was setting he believed they were ready to show him their drills once more. "Okay, show me your progress." Sakumo watched as their movements were as fluid as water and their stances were rock solid.

He smiled at the panting six-year-olds before saying, "Good job, your first lesson in Kenjutsu is complete and to celebrate I say we get ice cream!"

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

Naru giggled at dad and I grinned. Yes, the White Fang of Konoha had a weakness and it was his sweet tooth.

Naru and I handed dad our bokkens and as he put them back in the scroll, I felt like a little teasing was in order. "Hey dad, we can't have ice cream."

"And just why not?"

"Because we haven't had supper yet."

I watched him chew over this new information before sighing. "Okay, we'll eat supper then we'll have ice cream."

I nodded. "I don't care what we eat as long as it's not ramen."

Naru looked at me with a twinkle in her eye before following behind dad and asking sweetly, puppy dog eyes and everything, "Sensei, can we have ramen?"

Dad patted her head. "Of course we can."

I glared at her, darn her for being so cute. Wait, did I just call her cute? I shook my head and followed after them as they walked to the ramen stand. Why did they both have to have a comfort food addiction?

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

About an hour later, after we got ramen and ice cream, which still was surprising to me because Kakashi never did have much of a sweet tooth so I figured Sakumo-sensei wouldn't either, we returned home, exhausted, sweaty, but at the same time full, in more ways than one.

Kenjutsu was something I had always wanted to do. Today had filled a void in my training and I couldn't wait for the next lesson.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I sat with dad in the living room and we went over our strategy. "Kakashi, you are not going to like this, but you have to act, dress, talk, even whine like a six year old."

I twitched but calmly asked him why.

Dad sighed. "See what I mean? A normal six year would have gotten more emotional about it."

I tilted my head. "What do I have to do to be like a normal six year old?"

Dad smiled at me. "I'm going to get you some help on that and before you know it you'll be able to act like a normal six year old."

I agreed with him, but at the same time wondered just what he was talking about. Then he brought in Naru and I knew.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I was standing in the kitchen getting a glass of water when Sensei popped in. "Naru, can you come into the living room?"

I nodded and sat beside Kakashi on the couch. I could tell he was annoyed at something. "Naru, remember I told you this morning that Kakashi and I were going on a mission?"

I nodded and he continued. "Well, the mission requires Kakashi and I to go as father and son to a small town in another country and do some looking around." I noticed he was leaving out information. "Well, the only thing is that Kakashi has to act like a regular, non-ninja six year old if we want this mission to be a success. And frankly, he's never acted like a six year old and I doubt he knows how."

I smiled and nodded, knowing what he was going to ask already. "So you want me to show Kakashi how to act like a six year old and not look like he's acting?"

He agreed before explaining. "I wanted to ask you because even though you are a ninja you still retain a lot of child-like ways and actually know how to act your own age."

I looked at Kakashi. Yep, he was annoyed by this. "I'll do it sensei. Can we start tomorrow?"

"Yeah, why don't both of you go to bed, you've had a long day."

We said our goodnights and headed to get ready for bed.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I sighed as dad told me goodnight and tried not to be annoyed as I walked to the bathroom. I hated being six and so small. I hated knowing deep down inside that the only reason I had been chosen for the mission was because I could pass for a six-year-old or younger child. I also hated the fact I needed training to act like a six-year-old.

I closed my eyes and vaguely remembered a time when I felt the same way. When was I going to get recognized for just my skills not my age or size? The voice in the back of my head smugly informed me that would happen around puberty.

I froze. I had forgotten about puberty. What had I done to deserve this?

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I waited 'til Sensei had gone to bed before I quietly went to Kakashi's door and knocked, but received no answer.

I pressed my lips to the door. "Kakashi, open up. Please, are you mad? I need to…"

"Naru, what are you doing?"

I jumped and quickly turned around to stare at Kakashi; I smacked his arm. "Don't do that again! You scared me."

He snorted before walking into his room. "Some ninja you are, can't even sense someone right behind you."

I glared. "Okay, I have to work on my awareness, but I need to talk to you first."

"About this 'mission' of yours that dad gave you?"

I nodded and sat on his bed while he sat on the floor and looked up at me. "Kakashi, you seemed so annoyed earlier, why?"

He looked out the window, "Because Naru, I'm frustrated with my age and size and with the fact that I have to have someone show me how to be a six year old. I just can't pretend to be a carefree child and at the same time have the same knowledge of killing that I have."

I looked into his eye before sitting beside him on the floor. "Kakashi, this whole reduced size thing is messing with you isn't it?" He looked at me with a raised eyebrow. "Because the Kakashi that I know would use this to his advantage. So what you are now short and when someone looks at you they say 'look at little Kakashi playing ninja.' How did you cope before?"

Kakashi got quiet. "That's the thing Naru, I can't remember. I think I'm already losing memories."

I rubbed my tired eyes, "Yeah I know how that feels. I can't remember anything specific from my childhood, just the blurry edges."

He nodded before speaking. "I guess I can take a leaf out of your book Naru, and make them notice me."

My eyes widened in delight. "Just how are you going to make them notice you more than they already do?"

He waved my question away. "Nothing flashy like the stuff you used to do, but I'm going to use my knowledge if we get into a tight spot, but hopefully we won't."

I glared at him before smiling. "So want to hear about your training for tomorrow?"

Kakashi shook his head. "Nope surprise me, but I refuse to play dress up."

I laughed and turned around quickly as the door opened and Sensei stood there in sweatpants and a towel draped over his shoulder. "You know that the older you two get the less appropriate this will become and I really, really don't want to become a grandfather anytime soon."

My face turned blood red and I said my goodnights before rushing to my room to cool down.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I glared at my father and felt my own blush threatening to show over the top of my mask. I just hoped he didn't see it.

"Hey 'kashi, did you know your ears turn red when you blush really hard?"

Yeah, he saw it. I got off of the floor and forcibly closed the door. "Goodnight Dad."

I sighed before walking to my bed and getting underneath the covers thinking about what Naru had in store for me tomorrow. I would learn to be a six-year-old and we would complete our mission.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

The next morning Naru was up bright and early and Sakumo found her cooking pancakes on the stove. "Naru, you can cook?"

She nodded before flipping one over. "Yep, had to or I would have starved."

Sakumo got quiet before talking again. "What do you have planned for Kakashi today?"

She grinned and turned around. "That's my little secret Sensei!"

Kakashi finally came downstairs, took a plate from the counter and pulled a pancake on to it. Sakumo watched as his son hurriedly ate the pancake when Naru's back was turned. He shook his head. His son was stubborn sometimes. After they finished eating Naru took Kakashi and Sakumo to a very unexpected place, the playground.

"I figured what better way to learn to be a six year old than to be around six year olds."

Kakashi crossed his arms and looked around the playground like he was looking at something he stepped in. "Do we have to?"

Sakumo pushed his son forward. "Go, and make friends."

Kakashi had taken a few steps before Sakumo called out again. "Wait, give me your weapons, scrolls and any other ninja devices you have."

Kakashi's eyes widened. "But what if I need them?"

Sakumo unbuckled his son's weapons pouch, before patting his head. "Then yell and I'll come give them to you, besides you still have you chakra. Get creative if you are attacked, which is unlikely in a playground full of children."

Kakashi glared at his father before he was dragged away by Naru, who took him to the slide. "Okay Kakashi, this is a slide."

"I know what the equipment is Naru, I'm not redundant."

Naru turned around. "Can you even spell redundant?"

"Yes I can, R…"

Naru held up her hands. "Just slide down the slide."

Kakashi sat on the hard plastic and pushed himself down and stood up, looking between his father and Naru. "Kakashi, it was supposed to be fun, not something torturous."

Kakashi looked between them again before shrugging his shoulders. "Umm, Wee?"

Naru let her head drop and Sakumo sighed. It was going to take an act of God for Kakashi to act like a regular six-year-old and watching his six-year-old Chunin son stiffly slide down the slide again, he wondered if even that would be enough.


	6. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo sat on the bench and was painfully aware of the fact that Kakashi was not doing a very good job of being a six-year-old. In fact, if Sakumo really thought about it, this might just be the only thing to date that Kakashi had ever tried and not gotten within the first hour. Sakumo looked at the sun in the sky; they had been in the park for three hours and still no change.

He watched where the kids were at. Both were currently on the swings and Kakashi looked like a kicked puppy just gently swaying with his feet dragging in the sand. Poor Naru was trying so hard to get him to enjoy himself that she wasn't enjoying her "mission." Sakumo also noticed the other parents had left with their children shortly after they arrived. The White Fang sighed. The absence of children was not helping Kakashi's case and he didn't know what to do to help his son.

He vaguely wondered what his wife would do in this situation, besides kick his butt for letting it happen in the first place.

He closed his eyes and thought way back to when Kakashi was much younger. Back to when his mother was still alive and back before he had even thought about becoming a ninja.

* * *

 _Flashback….._

 _Sakumo kneeled beside his wife and watched her play with their 18-month-old son in the green April grass, knowing it was a miracle she was strong enough to leave the house. He smiled sadly as he watched Kakashi crawl into his mother's lap and snuggle close to her. Sakumo raised a calloused hand to run his fingers through his son's silver hair before gently kissing his wife._

 _He looked at her sickly pale skin, the once healthy black hair that was now listless around her face and bags showing under her eyes where she hadn't slept. Hatake Nozomi was very sick and not even Tsunade could find a cure for her illness. Only time would tell if she would survive._

 _Sakumo was pretty sure being outside was not going to get her better, but she wanted so badly to go to the park with Kakashi that Sakumo couldn't tell her no. Of course, now watching those two play together and hearing Kakashi's excited babblings as he talked to his mother made it all worth the risk. He watched as Kakashi stood on strong legs and grabbed his mother's hand._

" _Where are we going Ka-chan?_

" _Momma! Merry Round!"_

 _Sakumo followed slightly behind the two and caught his wife's amused look as Kakashi took her closer to the merry-go-round. It almost stopped his breathing because she looked almost healthy again._

 _He smiled as he thought about the giant spinning ride. For some reason it had always been Kakashi's favorite and he loved to lie in the middle while the thing spun. "Mommy! Please?"_

 _She bent down and kissed his forehead. "Go on, I'm coming."_

 _Kakashi walked over to the metal disk and sat, waiting patiently for his mother. Nozomi turned to her husband and smiled. "I can't push him 'Kumo, will you?"_

 _Sakumo nodded before wrapping her in a hug. "Yeah, go get on with him. You like the contraption just as much as he does."_

 _She gave Sakumo a teasing laugh before darting ahead and scooping Kakashi in her arms._

 _Sakumo smiled as he heard his son's excited giggles. "Momma, is Daddy pushing?"_

 _She teasingly looked at Sakumo before answering. "Yes he's going to use all those big muscles he got from being an elite ninja to push us."_

 _Sakumo placed his hand on the iron rail and waited for them to get settled. Nozomi laid back and placed Kakashi on her stomach, where he could see the blurs that would go around them, but at the same time be secure in her arms. "Ready you two?"_

 _Kakashi giggled. "Ready daddy!"_

 _Sakumo gave the merry-go-round a running push and let it fly, watching as they spun around a couple of times. He would give it a couple of good pushes whenever he saw it was slowing down. He could hear Kakashi's voice scream with laughter and Nozomi's own tinkling laughter float around him as he pushed the merry-go-round faster._

 _They continued like that for some time, only stopping when Kakashi had fallen asleep in his mother's arms and Nozomi had been too tired to continue._

 _End Flashback…._

* * *

Sakumo sighed sadly as he left memory lane behind. Nozomi had died a week later and on her death bed she thanked him for that one last family day together in the park. To be honest Sakumo never took his son back to the park after that day because it brought back too many memories, but right now he couldn't help but wonder if his son still loved that spinning playground toy. Well, he figured it was worth a try.

He walked over to his son, who was still dragging his legs in the sand and touched his shoulder.

"Come on Kakashi. I have an idea."

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I blinked up at my father. I knew this wasn't going as smoothly as it should, but I just couldn't let go and be the six-year-old I was.

I followed him to a secluded part of the park and couldn't help but wonder if I had been here before. Naru stood beside me and looked around. Both of our eyes landed on the rusted merry-go-round in the middle of the field. I tilted my head and a woman's voice filled my memories. **"Where are we going Ka-chan?"** I blinked and had the sudden urge to look for a black haired woman.

Dad was standing between me and the merry-go-round, watching me. He then asked, "Want me to push you Kakashi?"

A younger voice filled my head. **"Momma, is Daddy pushing?"** I looked at him and walked across the field with Naru in tow. When we got to the merry-go-round I simply lay back in the middle of the thing and looked at the clouds overhead. Naru joined me, silent and lost in her own world of memories.

I saw dad grip a gloved hand to the rusted iron rail. "Ready?"

I opened my mouth to speak, but found it difficult. "Yeah dad."

He pushed off and the wheels underneath whined in complaint before smoothly turning. I was lost in that very moment. I could see the swirling blurs of the clouds and every so often a patch of green where we would spin close to the tree, but I could also feel the coldness of the merry-go-round and the wind that blew my hair with every turn. I had felt this before and I had loved it before.

I opened my mouth to say something and instead of words laughter erupted from between my lips. I saw dad falter and miss his next push before getting back into rhythm. I looked at Naru and saw the joy in her eyes and I couldn't stop the laughter from bubbling from me. I had never felt so free and weightless, like all of my cares had been taken off of me and I could be the child I was meant to be.

All too soon the spinning stopped and dad sat on the cold metal with us, our laughter ringing in the still air now accompanied by his even breathing.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I was amazed. Kakashi liked the merry-go-round and it had been enough to break through his cold, stiff exterior.

I grabbed his hand. "Let's go slide and this time I bet you'll enjoy it!"

Kakashi didn't answer me but the look in his eyes said it all. Something had changed in him and hopefully it was for the better.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo took his original spot on the bench and watched as Naru took Kakashi down the slide again, but this time Kakashi enjoyed it. He smiled and silently thanked God for this breakthrough. He would have hated to cancel the mission because Kakashi couldn't act like a child.

Naru had even managed to get Kakashi to push her on the swings and he actually didn't complain about it as he did earlier.

The White Fang smiled as he decided to let them play for a little while longer. Besides, you were only young once right?

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

All too soon Sensei called out to us. "Okay you two, let's go get something to eat."

I jumped out of the swing, landing swiftly on my feet and turned to look at Kakashi. He walked up to me before poking me in the forehead with his index finger, right below my forehead protector. "Kakashi?"

He winked at me before whispering. "Tag, you're it."

My eyes widened as I heard what he said and his step faltered as he watched me not move. Then I grinned and raced towards him. He laughed as he applied chakra to his feet and stayed ahead of me. I could just barely graze the back of his shirt if I reached far enough, but I didn't want this feeling of chasing him to stop.

I had never seen him this happy or carefree and I wanted to let him have it before calm, cool and collected Kakashi came back. We raced towards Sensei, who was a big help in getting Kakashi to break out of his cold shell. I watched as Kakashi slowed down and latched onto his legs before yelling, "Base!"

Sensei just laughed before reaching down and ruffling Kakashi's hair and patting my head. "This turned out better than I expected it to. I'm proud of both of you."

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I followed beside Naru and dad when we left the park. Before all the other kids had left I had saw them play tag together and wanted to try it out. I vaguely remember playing tag before, but I was sure it was done for training and not for fun.

I stretched my muscles that were still sore from training and walked into the barbeque place with them. I was starving and couldn't wait to eat. We had been given a booth and were waiting for our food when a familiar voice entered the room and dad raised a hand in greeting. "Minato, you're back early. How did the mission go?"

I turned to look at my sensei, he still had the same blonde hair and blue eyes, but looked exhausted. "Fine, just a little longer than I would have liked."

"Hey Sensei!" He smiled at me brightly before ruffling my hair, which I ducked away from and scooted over to give him room.

Then I realized my mistake. Naru and Minato would be sitting side by side and I just hoped no one recognized the resemblance. Of course, I never got what I wanted. I was sure Naru wouldn't notice unless it was brought to her attention because, as far as I knew, she had no idea the man was her father.

I'm not saying Naru was too stupid to be able to see it herself, but I had learned from my partner a long time ago that she didn't have the most loving and warm childhoods. I knew the pain of what it was like to grow up without parents, it made you see the world differently.

I believed Naru knew deep down inside that Minato was her father, but she wouldn't allow herself to be set up for disappointment. So she ignored it and lived in blissful ignorance.

I felt my heart pound against my chest as I realized that Naru and Minato would be training together for at least a week while we were on our mission. I decided right there that she needed to know about her parentage before someone pointed it out and she took it the wrong way or broke down from the information.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo watched as Minato sat beside Naru and he couldn't believe what he was seeing.

The White Fang of Konoha was a very bright man and looking at Naru and Minato together he figured you would have to be an idiot not to recognize the resemblance. Both had the same blonde hair, even though Naru's was long and straight she still had the same spiky bangs as Minato. Both had the same blue eyes; not even the shape of them was different.

Sakumo let his eyes wander to other features; same chin, nose, and good Lord, they even smiled the same. He felt a headache forming behind his temples. That would mean Minato fathered a child at 17, which was not unusual nowadays. He had been young, only 21, when Kakashi was born, but that would also mean Minato may have no idea the girl was his.

Sakumo turned to his friend and smiled, he would ask him about it later. "I would like you to meet my student, Naru."

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I felt my heart pound in my chest as I turned to look at Minato, the future fourth Hokage and my idol. A part of me wanted to be angry with him for slamming the Kyuubi in my belly, but I couldn't be angry with him now. He hadn't done it yet and, if I had any say in it, he wasn't going to this time around.

I was nervous. Meeting him the first time was nothing like meeting him up close and personal. I bowed my head and told him my name. "I'm Uzu Naru."

I looked up and saw him smiling at me. Why did it look so familiar and make me so happy? "Hello Naru, I'm Namikaze Minato. Did Sakumo tell you that I was going to train you while those two are on their mission?"

I nodded. "Yes sir, he did."

I watched Minato lean back and smile. "Good, that means I don't have to bore you with the details."

Sensei rolled his eyes at Minato before thanking the waitress that had brought our food. "Minato, she's determined. I think you two will get along just fine. She reminds me a lot of Kushina actually."

I raised an eyebrow, who was Kushina? I turned and to my surprise Minato was blushing slightly, trying to cover it up by coughing and changing the subject. "Ahh, doesn't this food looks good?" Sensei snorted at the comment before taking a piece of meat and eating it.

I was surprised when I heard Kyuubi chuckle in the back of my head about how unobservant humans were.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I knew that look in dad's eye the gears in his head were turning and he saw the similarities between the two. I mentally groaned and hoped that he wouldn't say anything. To my surprise he didn't. Well, except the Kushina comment but that was mostly just to tease Minato about the Whirlpool kunoichi because there was no way he had figured out who her mother was.

I lowered my mask and ate while dad and Sensei were talking and Naru was lost in her own little world. I pulled up my mask and poked her side after I finished eating. She looked up at me in annoyance. "What?"

I looked to see if the two men were paying us any attention as I slightly leaned closer. "We need to talk tonight about our mission."

She nodded, instantly understanding before turning back to her food. I leaned back and closed my eyes in thought. How was Naru going to handle this new information and how was she going to handle being with her father for the next couple of days?

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo and Minato split the bill for the food before telling Naru and Kakashi to go back to the house.

"I'll be home shortly. Minato and I have something to discuss about Naru's training."

Minato looked at him quizzically before following the White Fang to a deserted training ground.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

Kakashi quickly grabbed my hand and pulled me towards the house. He was in a hurry for some reason. In record time we made it to the house. Kakashi pushed me into a chair in the living room and locked the front door before standing in front of me and pacing.

I knew he was in deep thought about something because he only paced when he was thinking. "Kakashi, what's going on?"

He looked at me and I saw the sadness and guilt in his eyes as well as something else I couldn't put my finger on. "Naru, I need to tell you something, but I'm not sure how you are going to take it."

I tapped my foot and decided to tease him. "You're going to tell me you want to find Gai and proclaim him as your eternal rival?"

His pacing stopped and his eyes narrowed. "Don't even joke about that."

I didn't even try to hide my laughter from him and once I calmed down enough he began talking. "Naru have you ever wanted to know who your parents were?"

I froze. I hadn't asked who my parents were since I was four. I learned to stop after the first answer I had received. "You know who my parents are?!"

He looked at me sadly. "Don't get mad Naru, but yes, I've always known."

I abruptly stood up and yelled. "Don't get mad! You've kept this from me the entire time I've known you, years Kakashi, years!"

Kakashi grabbed my shoulders and pushed me back into the chair. I hated he was still taller than me. "Naru, I couldn't tell you because it was a secret, punishable by death and to protect you from your father's enemies."

I stopped and realized I was wrong for blaming him. He was under orders, but I was still ticked because he lied. "His enemies? You really expect me to believe my father was so powerful that he had powerful enemies? No Kakashi, I know exactly who my parents are!"

I closed my eyes, furious at him for bringing those memories up, but I couldn't stop myself from seeking that one memory or from the tears that spilled from underneath my eyelids.

 _Flashback….._

 _Four-year-old Naru stood looking out of the orphanage window at the Hokage Mountain. Being so young she loved to look at the faces and wonder what their lives were like. She giggled softly as she looked at the last face on the mountain, Namikaze Minato, the Yellow Flash, Yondaime Hokage or better known to Naru as her hero._

 _Little Naru had seen pictures of the Yondaime before and couldn't help but notice they shared the same blue eyes and blonde hair, which gave Naru the impression that they had to be related. She had seen how children looked like their parents and if Naru looked like the Yondaime didn't that make him her daddy?_

 _Of course when Naru asked the orphanage attendant she was met with an ice-cold glare. "Never, ever, say that about the Yondaime. He wouldn't have produced an illegitimate child, especially not one like you. Your whore mother abandoned you and your father was a drunk. They never married and you weren't wanted. Now go to bed before I take you over my knee."_

 _Little Naru went to bed heartbroken that night. Not by the mean words because she was used to it from the attendant, but because of the fact that her dreams had been crushed, stepped on and then burned right before her eyes._

 _Naru vowed to never again seek out her parent's identities and after that night she never compared her looks to the Yondaime again._

 _End Flashback…_

"My parents didn't want me and were nothing more than a whore and a drunk."

Kakashi got right in my face, his eyes seething with anger and his teeth clenched. "Why do you believe bull like that? Your mother was far from a whore and your father never drank more than socially. You were one of the most wanted and loved babies to ever be carried in Konoha and the only reason you didn't get the life of royalty was because your dad had to sacrifice himself to put Kyuubi in you."

My eyes widened in shock as I processed everything he had said. "Kyuubi? But that would mean my father was the-the-the…"

Kakashi rolled his eyes before finishing my sentence. "Yes, the Yondaime. Namikaze Minato is your father, well, I guess he will be is the correct term."

I shook my head and more hot furious tears fell. "No, it can't be true! If it was true then why was I the Village outcast? Why did I have to struggle in the academy because the teachers wouldn't help me? Why did I have to buy instant ramen and expired milk because the stores would overprice everything else for me? Why was I always alone? Why Kakashi, why?"

I cried into the edge of the chair, not caring that I had vowed not to cry again, only babies cried, but sitting there with the truth I couldn't stop the tears. I felt Kakashi shift from his position and rub my back awkwardly. "Let it out Naru. I'm sorry that you had to find out like this, and I'm sorry you have to train with him like nothing is wrong."

He got really quiet for a moment before he spoke again. "I can't change what happened to you Naru, but remember my promise? I promised this time it will be different and I intend to keep my promise. As far as your questions go, the villagers were blind to what was right in front of them. They refused to see the truth because they were scared, which is no excuse, but they were. You should have never been as lonely as you were and this time around we can change that. Do you believe me when I say that Naru?"

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I didn't know what to do when she first started crying. I was just not comfortable with helping other people through emotional things. I coped by training myself to the point of no feelings, but I knew Naru wasn't like that. She needed, and deserved, someone to comfort her. So I swallowed my fears and tried to rub her back the same way I saw Hinata rub Naru's one time after a mission gone wrong. Hinata had been Naru's only friend through academy and even then because of her heiress status she had to be a friend from afar or her clan would have interfered.

I needed to hear Naru's answer because I needed to know if she believed we would change the future for the better and soon she answered. "Yes, I know we are going to change the future for the better."

I patted her back one more time before removing my hand. "Do you have any questions for me?"

She shook her head no before changing her mind and asking, "What about my mother?"

"Her name was Uzumaki Kushina from Whirlpool. A fiery red head with a temper to match Tsunade's, but with a brash attitude and determined spirit. You take after her a lot Naru."

Naru was silent before she asked. "How did she die?"

"Childbirth, the stress of Kyuubi and then the birth was too much on her, but she held you before she died. They both loved you very much."

I felt like I had said the word 'love' too many times, but it didn't matter to Naru; she just sat there and stared out the window and I let her. She needed to come to terms with this at her own pace. I stood up and walked towards my bedroom. "Naru, I'm going to bed and I would suggest you try to get some sleep too."

I saw her nod and get up before I walked up the stairs and entered my room and sat on the bed. I sighed before pulling the covers out from under me and lying down, all the time wondering how tomorrow would go.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

You know, I had taken the news fairly well, or so I thought. I didn't attack Kakashi, nor did I allow Kyuubi to take over. So yeah, it was better than it could have gone. Of course, I did cry like a two-year-old in front of my partner and ex-sensei, but I don't think it bothered him.

I lay in the bed and stared at the ceiling, letting the news sink into my brain and bones. I was the Yondaime's daughter, which explained our resemblance. There was so much left unsaid though. Like why wasn't I adopted if I really was the Yondaime's daughter? Or better yet, why hadn't I been informed after I was older and able to take care of myself?

I sighed and rubbed my aching head when Kyuubi decided to take the opportunity to speak. "Kit."

"Go away fur ball, I'm not in the mood right now."

Kyuubi got quiet before he spoke again. "Kit, don't dwell on what happened, but change it. You've been given a new chance. Overcome your past and make a brighter future for yourself."

I laid there in the darkness and chewed over his words. Stupid fox, when did he get so smart?

I closed my eyes, wanting relief and at the same time hoping this was not all a dream.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Minato looked at Sakumo before busting out in laughter. "You think your student is my illegitimate daughter?"

Sakumo twitched. "Yes, have you looked at the girl? She's a dead ringer for you. I'm telling you, get a blood test because that girl is your child."

Minato chuckled one more time. "Sakumo, I would have been 17 and I had the legendary pervert Jiraiya as a sensei. He taught me how to prevent stuff like this from happening."

The White Fang sighed and ran a hand through his bangs. "Accidents can happen and I think one did."

Minato paled before answering. "You know, it is a very good possibility. Did she say if her mother was from Wave?"

"No, she's never talks about her past. It's like she doesn't have one."

Minato looked around. "What if she is my daughter? What then Sakumo? How am I going to explain this to Kushina?"

"Minato, it's very simple. Don't worry 'til you have proof then tell Kushina. I'm sure she's not going to leave you. She kind of likes kids, well, kind of." Sakumo was not sounding very convincing to his friend.

"So let's say Kushina doesn't leave me and Naru turns out to be my daughter. I want to be a part of her life, but I can't take care of a kid doing the number of missions that I do. I'm rarely home and when I am it's only long enough to heal and train."

Sakumo was quiet before he spoke. "I manage just fine. Being a single parent is hard, but not impossible to do and I'll help. Naru can stay with us whenever you are gone, just like Kakashi stays with you."

Minato smiled at his friend and for the first time let the excitement build up in his chest. He might have a daughter.

Sakumo grinned at his friend's excited face before turning and heading home. All he wanted to do was go to bed. Tomorrow he and Kakashi would get ready for their mission and be out of the village the day after that.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

Dad woke me up the next morning and I yawned as he told me what we were doing for the rest of the day. "We have to get ourselves ready for the mission, so we've got to get civilian clothes and stuff like that."

I nodded and dressed in my shinobi uniform before walking out to see Naru coming out of her bedroom. "Morning Scarecrow!"

I growled at her and she giggled. "Feel better Naru?"

Her eyes darkened before the smile was back again. "I thought about it last night and figured that I'll just take it day by day and cross that bridge when I get there."

I nodded and dad called us into the kitchen. "Okay, today Naru you start your training with Minato while we are shopping. We'll drop you off by the training grounds on our way to the store. So eat up and let's move out."

Soon we were walking the same dirt path that led to the marketplace and to the training grounds. Naru walked beside me. "What's Minato-sensei like Kakashi?"

I knew she meant what her father was like. "Well, he's a very talented Jounin, but he's still really down to earth and his training methods are just as questionable as my father's."

I heard dad grunt in annoyance and Naru giggle. "I bet if we turned them in to the Hokage they would be charged with child abuse. What do you think Kakashi?"

Dad had turned around and winked at me. "I think so too Naru."

"Okay, if you two are done plotting we are at the training grounds and there's your replacement sensei Naru."

Minato walked over and I noticed him look at Naru a little longer than he did yesterday. "Good morning! Good luck you two on your mission and Kakashi, when you get back we'll continue training."

I nodded and followed behind dad. The last thing I heard was Naru greeting Minato-sensei.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo marked supplies off of his mental checklist as they traveled from one store to the other. They had luggage, weapons, exploding tags and soldier pills just in case something went wrong. Now the only thing left to get was clothing for both him and Kakashi.

He sighed. This was going to be an experience because Kakashi had not worn civilian clothes since he was three and Sakumo had no idea how he was going to get his son to try on the clothes. They stopped at the clothing store and walked inside. Kakashi was already showing signs of flight so Sakumo placed a hand on his shoulder and steered him to the clothing section.

"Try something on and keep in mind you have to look like a six year old civilian."

Sakumo went and easily found himself multiple shirts and pants and was ready to check out when he decided to check on Kakashi. The White Fang of Konoha groaned. His son had the right idea with the pants and shirts, but he looked like he was going to a funeral.

"Kakashi, try something that's not black. Civilian six year olds want bright colors like orange or red, not black." Kakashi went back to looking and Sakumo decided he might as well help him or they would be there all day.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I watched Minato-sensei watch me. It was really weird because he kept looking at me and then tried to speak before he would close his mouth and go back to staring. I blushed under his gaze and dared to strike up a conversation. "Minato-sensei, what are we doing today?"

He blinked when he realized I spoke to him and then he smiled. "Well, I figured today we can just get to know each other over a nice steaming bowl of ramen. Sound good?"

I grinned at him. "Yep, sounds good to me."

We were both soon sitting at the ramen stand and he turned to me and said, "So introduce yourself, you know likes, dislikes, hobbies, dreams."

"Why don't you go first Sensei?"

The ramen was placed in front of them and Minato broke his chopsticks before starting. "Well, I enjoy cooking and coming up with my own jutsu. I dislike those who hurt other people and Iwa. I guess my current hobby is going on missions because that's all I've been doing lately, but my real hobby is reading. And I'm going to be Hokage, no doubt in my head about it."

I laughed at his confidence, knowing it was true. "I enjoy pulling pranks, but I also really like learning Kenjutsu. I dislike stuck up people and people who put down other's dreams. My hobbies are reading and gardening and my dream is similar to yours, I want to surpass all of the previous Hokages."

Minato nodded in approval before eating some ramen. "I'm sure your dream will come true Naru, I believe in you."

I hid my face from him. I wanted to hear those words for so long from my father and having him sitting beside me saying them was too much to bear. I fought back those feelings and smiled brightly at him. "Thank you sensei and I know you'll achieve your dream too!" Mentally I added, in about seven years.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Naru and Minato spent the rest of the time talking about themselves and getting to know one another, never letting on that they knew each other's secrets.

Naru got a perfect day with her father and Minato learned more about the girl he was sure was his child. He just had to make sure and Naru never felt the needle prick that drew the evidence he would need.

Eventually Sakumo and Kakashi made it back from their shopping and took Naru home with them. "See you tomorrow Naru, 8:00 a.m sharp!"

Naru nodded her head at Minato before taking a bag from Kakashi and carried it home.

Kakashi and Sakumo stood at the village gates the next morning and said their goodbyes to Naru.

Kakashi looked at her searchingly before she waved goodbye and walked over to where Minato was standing.

He didn't let his worrying about Naru bother him as he walked after his dad and out of the village gates. He was on a mission and needed his head clear. Both of the Hatake's had the same thought running through their heads as they got further away from Konoha, 'mission start!'


	7. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

* * *

(Kakashi POV)

Dad and I stopped in a little town right outside of Iwa territory and got into character, but first we had to henge our appearances to check into the hotel. It would have been noticeable if we checked in with silver hair and then checked out later with brown.

We both had to dye our hair because silver was too recognizable to Iwa ninjas and civilians. Another reason was because henges could be seen through or accidentally dropped.

My dad was feared throughout the shinobi nations and everyone knew his distinguishable features, so we had to change them and that included removing our masks, much to my displeasure.

We checked into the hotel and instantly began getting into character. Dad locked the door of our room and pulled the blinds down after we got in there so we could drop our henges. I watched as he tossed his bag on the king sized bed and motioned for me to do the same.

He reached into his bag and pulled out the brown hair dye. I looked at the bottle and noticed it was different from the kind we had used for our prank. "Come here Kakashi. I'll do yours first then you can help me with mine."

I nodded and followed him into the bathroom and watched as he read the instructions. "Take off your shirt so it doesn't get dye on it."

I took off my shirt and sat down on the side of the bathtub and waited for him to put the dye in. "It's not permanent is it?"

He shook his head before putting on gloves and squirting the brown goo into his hands before putting it into my hair. "You know, I have you and Naru to thank for this idea." I grinned at him and let him continue massaging the color into my hair and soon he was through. "Okay, hop in the shower and get the excess off and we'll do mine after you are through." I nodded and he left the bathroom for me to shower off.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo went back into the main room and rummaged through the packs to lay out the clothes they would need tomorrow morning. He decided they would spend the night here and head out in the morning. If they made good time they would make it to Tsuiki by nightfall.

They would have to walk most of the way because the further into Iwa they got, the more they could not show they were ninja. Sakumo heard his son get out of the shower and after he got dressed opened the door and stepped out. Sakumo grinned as he looked at his now brunette son. "Son, I think brown's a good color for you, but we forgot to do your eyebrows."

Kakashi rolled his eyes at his father before looking in the mirror and tilting his head to the side and scrunching up his nose. "I think I like my original color better." Sakumo laughed before removing his shirt and going into the bathroom and sitting on the side of the bathtub.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I went into the bathroom and took the bottle of brown dye from the counter before looking at the broad back of my father and realizing that I was too short to reach the top of his hair. Dad turned around and grinned at me. "Can't reach?"

I glared at him and left the bathroom to get the stool out of the other room. I smiled at my victory and placed the oversized gloves on my hands before squirting the brown goo into them and climbing on top of the stool. I put the brown dye into the silver hair, making sure to cover all of the silver with the brown.

We didn't talk much; the tension in the air about the mission was too heavy to break with words. Dad stood up after I was through and I walked out of the bathroom to let him shower off. When he was done we dyed our eyebrows to match our hair. "Well, we shouldn't be noticeable, but now we need to get our story straight."

I nodded and he placed a silencer jutsu on the room so we could talk in private. He pulled out the mission scroll and a map of Iwa to show me where the town was located. I noticed there were some changes to the border.

"It should be a good day's walk from here, and I do mean walk because once we pass the borders no one can know we are ninja. The bad thing is that Iwa has extended its borders as you can see. The village is no longer on the outskirts of Iwa territory; it is now behind the borders. It's going to be hard to get past the borders anyway because of the tightened security, but I've got an idea about how we are going to do that. So we have our aliases. I am going in as Tanaka Tomi and you are?"

I instantly answered. "Tanaka Kin."

He nodded and continued, "We are from a small farming community and I am a very unsuccessful farmer who just barely saved enough money to bring my young son to his first ever festival. Can you do the whole wide eyed innocent look?" I nodded and he smirked. "Show me."

I gave him my best puppy dog eyes and soon he was laughing. "Okay, you've got that down. We are going to be staying in a cheap motel near the red light district and are only going to be in town for a couple of days."

"What if we get separated?"

He set the scroll down before answering. "Go back to the motel. It's highly unlikely we will get separated, but if we do just go to the motel and wait. We'll spend the day visiting the festival and being on the lookout. We have to stay close to the ninjas because they will know what's going on. Then at night I will play the night scene, or if we find out some good information during the day we can check it out and we'll take back whatever information we find to the Hokage."

I looked at the mission's scroll and reread the details. "But don't you think they will be even more careful because the festival is going on?"

He shook his head no. "The festival is a perfect cover because no one would notice the extra people there or the fact that the people are hiding something." I yawned and dad picked the scroll and the map off of the bed. "Get some sleep Kakashi, we leave in the morning."

I nodded and the last thing I saw was dad sitting on the edge of the bed staring intently at the map and the scroll.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I stretched as I walked through the house and looked out the window. The sun was rising in the sky and it wouldn't be long before it was time to train with my biological father. I was tempted to go and train before I met up with him, but I didn't know what to expect from his training.

So I sat in the living room and attempted to read a book, which only worked for about ten minutes. I couldn't just sit there and wait. I grabbed my gear and went to the training ground for light training while I waited for him. It didn't take long for Minato-sensei to show up and when he did he was smiling. "Well you look like you've been busy."

I smiled back at him before asking, "What are we going to do today Sensei?"

He placed the bag he was carrying on the ground and pulled out three bells. "We are going to work on your tracking skills. Sakumo specializes in that but he asked me to give you an introduction course to it."

I nodded and he summoned three toads. "I'm going to give these to these three toads and you have to find them, but they cannot leave the training ground. So don't worry about having to look all over Konoha for them. I want you to come and get acquainted with them so you can better track them."

I walked up to the first one and saw that it was a bright orange, but smelled like cotton candy. I wrinkled my nose at the sweet smell before seeing that his left foot was missing a toe. That information would come in handy later.

The next toad was the horrid color pink and didn't have a distinct smell, but her breathing was irregular for a toad. Another important key was that she was bigger than the other toads and I'm pretty sure she was female because she had several pieces of jewelry on.

The final toad stared me up and down before laughing; I glared at him and tried to find a distinguishing feature only for the toad to jump into my face and kiss my cheek. My eyes widened as I fell back and yelped.

Minato-sensei couldn't contain his laughter and I glared at him as he tried to control his hysterical laughs. "I -haha- guess I –haha- should have warned –haha- you about –haha- him!"

I ignored him and went back to studying the perverted toad before me; dark green in color, kind of smells like ramen and smaller than the others. I finally nodded to sensei. "I think I've got them characterized now."

"Good and now I'll give the bells to them and they can go hide." He gave the bells on each one. The toads carried them in their mouths and I had to close my eyes while they left the clearing to hide.

Minato-sensei waited five minutes before giving me the signal. "Go!"

I took off into the forest and listened to the world around me. I could faintly hear the wind rustling the leaves and the soft trickle of the river that ran beside the training ground. I decided the best way to start would be by smell. The first frog had the strongest smell and he would be the easiest to find.

I kept my eyes closed and sniffed the air in hopes of catching a whiff of the sweet smell. I couldn't find anything, so I walked closer to the clearing and stopped as I heard that laugh. I swung around quickly to see the dark green frog sitting on a log laughing at me.

He hopped to the spot right in front of me before winking and taking off. I was ticked. If he thought he could toy with Uzu Naru then he had another thing coming! I took off after him, dodging trees and fallen logs, barely missing thorn bushes and running right over poison ivy.

I saw red. I was going to get that toad if it was the last thing I did, and it nearly was because I then slipped in the mud and landed face first into the gooey substance. I lifted my head to see the toad sitting before me, sticking his tongue out with the bell on the end and then he hopped away.

I groaned and picked myself up, trying to get the mud off of me. I pulled the twigs out of my hair and noticed a smell like cotton candy. My eyes widened and I quietly followed my nose. I peered over a fallen log to see the bright orange toad not paying me any attention and croaking.

I grinned in triumph, easing my way around the fallen log and jumped to catch the toad. To my surprise I looked down and saw that I had my prize grasped firmly in my hands. "Yes!" The Toad looked disappointed but after I got the bell he disappeared.

I had one bell and two to go. I knew the dark green toad was going to be hard to catch, but the pink one was going to be hard to find. If I could just get close enough I could hear the irregular breathing, but the training ground was huge and the frog was so small. I sat on the log and thought about my next action just like I would a prank. My eyes widened as I remembered the pink toad's love for jewelry.

I grabbed a couple of rocks and henged them into expensive looking jewelry pieces and sat them on the log. I would wait 'til the toad got the pieces. I knew it looked suspicious, but I wouldn't try to catch her until after she had hopped away with the goods. I sat in a tree directly across from the log and waited. Soon the pink frog came into the area and saw the jewelry glittering in the sunlight. She looked around suspiciously, even checking the trees before inching closer.

I breathed a sigh of relief, glad I had thought ahead and chosen a spot that was well covered. The pink toad retrieved her treasure with glee and hopped away. I waited 'til she was directly below me before jumping down and landing right in front of her. She backed away wide eyed, but I had made clones and they soon surrounded her as well. She looked around before sighing in defeat and putting the bell on the ground in front of me. I grinned and patted her on the head before she disappeared.

Two down one very annoying toad to go and I had a feeling this one was going to be tough. I tried to think back to what I observed about the toad; he smelled like ramen and he was smaller than the rest. I could use a ramen trap, but something told me he wouldn't fall for that. I also couldn't help but think about how the thing had kissed me. Wait that gave me an idea!

I grinned as I made a clone and had the clone henge into a very pretty female toad. I picked my toad clone up and placed it onto a fallen log with strict instructions, "Find him and lead him back to me."

I needed to plan better for this one; he had gotten away from me too many times. If my plan didn't work then it was always good to have backup. I made as many clones as I could, which was about 20 because my control had gotten a lot better. Then I strategically placed them around the area. Some in the trees, some on the ground, a couple underneath the ground and, of course, I was sitting high in a tree waiting for my toad clone to show up.

I watched with hidden glee as my toad clone hopped into the area while coyly croaking back at the dark green toad. I rolled my eyes at the perverted look on the dark green toad's face. I smiled as my toad made the dark green toad close his eyes so she could kiss him. I used a substitution jutsu to trade places with my toad clone and as the dark green toad leaned in for a kiss I plucked him up.

His eyes widened and I could see the glare and the surprise. I laughed and held him away from me in case he decided to kiss me again. "I got you now toad!" He just simply rolled his eyes and gave me the bell from his mouth before disappearing.

I was celebrating in the area when Minato-sensei showed up congratulating me. "Good job and excellent traps! I heard about your love for pranks from Sakumo. You would make a good demolition expert. Now come on and we'll go get something to eat."

I gave him back the bells before running after him; training with him was going to be fun.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

Dad woke me up the next morning before daylight and told me to get dressed in the civilian clothes we had brought. I picked up the dark brown pants and a white shirt as well as a tan jacket to go over it. Dad was already dressed in black pants and a dark blue shirt with a brown jacket. I looked at myself in the mirror before asking a question that had been bothering me. "Hey dad, when will this color wash out?"

"In about 10 washes or so; worst case scenario is that it never comes out and we have to dye our hair back to its original color."

I laughed at him, feeling strangely lighthearted for the morning before we sneak into Iwa. I lowered my voice to ask my next question. "What about weapons?"

He finished putting our clothes back in our packs before answering. "We each are going to have to conceal a kunai on us, but I guess you noticed that I left my tanto at home."

I actually hadn't noticed, but understood why he did. That thing would have given us away faster than the silver hair.

"We can't go into the snake pit unprepared, so one kunai should do, especially since this is just an information gathering mission. We do not engage the enemy Kakashi. Do you understand?"

I nodded and after we made sure everything was out of the room we checked out and began our walk to the border of Iwa. Dad called for a break not too soon after we started and I looked at him funny. He just pulled me to the side of the road before whispering to me. "Kakashi, do you think you could cry or throw a tantrum?"

I raised an eyebrow at him. "I could try, but I'm not promising tears."

"I guess we really don't need tears, but it would be helpful because we have got to get into Iwa without any suspicions drawn our way. I'm going to need you to act like you've never acted before. Forget the fact that you are a Chunin, forget the fact that you have never pitched a fit. I want you to act like you've seen other six year olds act when they don't get their way. The success of our mission counts on it."

I looked into his eyes and saw the seriousness there. I knew I would have to leave behind my shinobi emotion training and draw on the six-year-old part of me. I wasn't going to disappoint him, I grinned at him before answering. "Sure thing daddy, I've got this covered!"

Dad's eyes widened in surprise before he grinned and ruffled my hair. We would be at the border checkpoint soon and before the end of the day we would walk into Tsuiki.

I gulped and walked beside my father as the border checkpoint became visible. I knew I had to act like a frightened six-year-old so I clung to dad's pant leg and looked around at the Iwa ninjas that manned the checkpoint.

There was a line so we had to wait. Dad lifted me up and placed me on his shoulders. I mentally grinned because I could now see over the other's heads and over into Iwa territory. I heard dad tap his foot and was surprised it was Morse code. To anyone looking on it would have seemed like he was being impatient.

 **See anything?**

I craned my neck to look, just like a curious six-year-old would, and caught the eye of a male ninja. I smiled and gave him my best impression of a curious six-year-old wave, which he returned with a gentle smile. I gently swayed my feet against dad's chest giving him my answer.

 **No, just a lot of ninja. Waiting for something?**

He tapped his foot some more. **Could be.**

We finally made it to the checkpoint box and dad placed me on the ground as he took out the papers that would let us enter Iwa. I tilted my head and looked at the papers, just ordinary pieces of paper with our aliases information on it.

The guard looked at dad before letting his eyes rest on me. "Six years old and getting to go with daddy to a festival. You must be excited."

I didn't like the way he talked to me like I was a baby, but I had to keep in character so I buried my face in my father's leg and heard the gruff laughter of the ninja and the light laughter of my father. "He's just shy, aren't you Kin?"

I peeked from behind his leg and ducked back before I lost control and snarled at the ninja in front of me. The ninja moved from behind the desk and forcibly took my face away from my father's leg. I saw dad's leg muscles tense as the ninja grabbed my chin in his hands and looked me over. "He's very clean for a farmer's son." He opened my mouth with a thumb. "And he's got clean teeth."

My eyes frantically searched for dads and he gave me a reassuring look before answering the ninja. "I may be poor, but my son will not look like a beggar's child."

The ninja's eyes bore into mine and I knew I had to think fast, so I willed myself to cry by thinking of my father's suicide. I was surprised that the tears poured out of my eyes and a sob broke through my lips, which alerted another ninja to our predicament. "Leave the boy alone Taki!"

The ninja, Taki, looked away sheepishly before grinning at dad. "Sorry about that, I had to make sure there wasn't anything else going on here. I'm a little paranoid."

Dad looked at him angrily before picking me up and I buried my face into his shoulder. "Well next time think before you do something like this! I hope you are happy that you made a young boy cry!"

Dad picked up our papers and stormed through the makeshift gate and into Iwa. When we were far enough away, dad whispered into my ear. "Good job 'kashi, you thought on your feet back there and if you hadn't cried I think he would have gotten us."

I nodded against his shoulder; my tears had already dried. "Can I get down now?"

He nodded and placed me on the ground. I walked beside him, making sure to look around and noticing the other people on the road into Iwa. Everyone looked tired and a couple of them were ninja. I kept close to dad, but at the same time I would wander a little away from him in the hopes of hearing a conversation that would help us. Soon we reached the town of Tsuiki and dad was right, we reached it about nightfall. So we traveled around the red light district and got a cheap motel.

Dad pushed me into the room, locked the door, pulled down the blinds and put up a silencer jutsu on the main room. I stretched and lay on the bed. Dad turned to me. "We have to do watches from now on. I'll take the first one and you can take the second one. Sound good?"

I nodded, too tired to answer and fell asleep under the watchful eyes of my father.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I sat up in bed and looked at the clock, it read 8:30. Crap, I was late for training with Minato-sensei. I hurriedly pulled some clothes on and raced to the training grounds only to find him not there. I stopped and looked around the area, wondering if he was hiding or if he was just late. I sat on the ground and waited. Before long he came running up. "I'm so sorry Naru, alarm clock didn't go off and I overslept."

I smiled at him. "It's okay sensei, accidents happen. I was late too."

"Well then, problem solved. So are you ready for your training today?" I nodded and he smiled an eerie smile. "Good because yesterday you showed me how good you were at setting traps, now I want to see how good you are at recognizing and avoiding traps."

I tilted my head to look at him. Was he trying to confuse me? "Explain please, sensei?"

"This morning I had a friend of mine come to the training ground and set up ten well disguised traps. Find them and disarm them and try not to get caught by them."

"What happens if I get caught?"

His grin widened and I had a sinking feeling in my stomach. "Then you have to run 5 laps around Konoha for every trap you get caught in."

Yeah, Kakashi was right, questionable training methods.

I nodded and he sat back and watched me get to work. I found the first trap easily enough. It was just like the one Kakashi had used when we were Genin. The rope being hidden amongst the fallen leaves and if I stepped in it I would have been captured. I left the clearing and started looking in the forest. Then I noticed the way the light shone through the trees and was hitting the ground at certain angles.

My eyes widened as I noticed a chakra string attached to some kunai. I walked up the tree and untied the weapons before pocketing them, two down and eight to go. I walked further into the forest and was currently searching to my left when I heard a signaling noise. I blinked and looked at the tree in front of me and the ones around me. Oh crap, they had motion activated exploding tags on them. My eyes widened and I high tailed it out of there as they exploded and Minato's voice yelled across the forest. "That's 5 laps Naru!"

I groaned and walked in the other direction and smelled oil. I stopped and looked on the ground before looking at the trees. In one tree was an oil covered log and in the other a flint arrow. I noticed on the ground was another chakra string and when the string was pulled, both of the objects would be released. The flint arrow would strike the bark of the log, setting it on fire because of the oil.

It was a literal deathtrap. I didn't exactly know how to disarm this one, but I figured as long as the log didn't ignite I was fine. I walked up the tree with the arrow and was going to cut the chakra string when I noticed that the slack from the line would cause the log to fall and the way the trap was set up the log would plow into the tree. I couldn't believe it, it was a double trap. Someone was not playing around with these traps.

I made a clone and had the clone climb down the tree I was in and up the other one. Together we disarmed the deadly trap and I was ready to move on. I'm not going to lie, I got a little cocky after I discovered the double trap, which is exactly why I stepped into a simple net trap that had me hanging from a tree. "That's 5 more laps Naru!"

I glared in the direction of his voice. How in the world could he see me? I had four more traps to go and I couldn't make another simple mistake. I blew the bangs out of my eyes as I scanned the area. I was missing something very important and then I knew what it was. "Kai!"

The genjutsu dispelled and a very nasty looking trap was uncovered. I was just thankful my genjutsu training with Sakumo-sensei had paid off because I would have walked head on into an oversized kunai. I shivered as I thought about how that would have hurt. I back tracked a little and was soon back at the clearing with Minato-sensei. I peered through the trees searching for anything that would give me a clue as to where the final three traps were.

Then I saw the note hanging from the tree. My instincts told me it was bad news. However, my curiosity got the better of me as I inched forward, making sure to not touch the note but at the same time be able to read it.

"Gotcha?"

I blinked at the words on the note before I felt two arms encircle my waist and I kicked out to try and get away. I heard Sensei's laughter in my ear. "Sometimes the best trap is a person!"

He let me go and I dropped to my feet. "Let me guess? Five more laps?" He nodded cheerfully and I groaned before heading further into the woods. I had to find these last two traps and disarm them. I looked around the forest for what seemed like hours before I noticed an exploding tag posted to a tree. I grinned and went to disarm it when I noticed something weird. My eyes followed a nearly invisible chakra string that was attached to a blade that was wedged in the opposite treetop; it was my final two traps.

I sighed in relief before disarming the blade and finally the exploding tag. I raced back to Minato-sensei who was waiting for me with two bento boxes that smelled like fish. I grinned as I stood in front of him and gave a mock salute. "Mission accomplished!"

He grinned and patted my head. "I know. I had a couple of clones out there watching you to make sure you didn't get into too much trouble with the traps."

"Hey Sensei, what was with some of those traps? They were very deadly."

He nodded. "But effective when hidden, right?" I nodded and he continued. "Traps are one of the most important things a ninja has besides chakra and they are also the most effective. You can get more enemies in one trap than you ever can with just one jutsu."

I watched him as he sat down beside me. "So eat up because you have 15 laps to do today. I do want to congratulate you though; you got 7 out of the 10 which is a really good record for a beginner."

I grinned at him. "I'm a prankster sensei, and traps are like pranks only traps is the "professional" word for it." He laughed at my revelation and all too soon had me running laps around Konoha.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I had the morning shift, which wasn't bad. I got to see the sunrise and wake dad up for the day to start. Today was the beginning of the festival and we were going to go out there and be the average father/son tourists that everyone else was being.

Dad yawned as he got out of the bed and got dressed for the day. I had dressed when I got up this morning and was excited about the day. I knew we had to do information gathering, but at the same time I was with my dad and secretly in the back of my mind I knew that I could act like the child I was never given the chance to be.

Dad smiled brightly at me as he told me our plans for the day. "We'll start at the center of the festival and work our way down. I have a feeling that the real activity is going to be around the dock storage areas."

I nodded in understanding. The village was beside a major river that could be used to get supplies to the Iwa army. So of course the most activity would be around the docks. "How are we going to get in there?"

Dad rubbed his chin before speaking. "I hate to do it, but you are going to have to get in there. Remember yesterday? People hate to see kids cry and will do near anything to make them stop. If I can get you close enough to the docks you can get in there and pretend to be lost, but listen, they cannot find your weapon on you."

I nodded and placed the kunai in the boots dad made me get; he said they were something a farmer's son would wear. I looked at his own boots and watched as he stuffed the kunai in there. "Let's move out."

We walked outside into the bustle of the street and I was transfixed at the transformation the alley had undergone while we were sleeping. Dad laughed before picking me up and placing me on his shoulders. "Amazing isn't it?"

I numbly nodded. I had never seen so many bright colors, smiling faces, exotic costumes and mouthwatering smells, but at the same time I could still see the dirt and grime underneath all that pretty. It was evident in the way the children were dirty and in the way the stuff was priced. This town was suffering because of the extra ninja population and as I looked around I noticed at least 10 in an arm's length from dad. I poked the top of his brown head before asking, "What are we going to do today daddy?"

He grinned at me. "Well Kin, let's go look at the booths today."

I nodded and dad went to the booths that had the most ninja around them, like the glass blowers booth. We both listened quietly to the conversation of the ninja's but they said nothing of importance. I was starting to get worried by the third booth because we had heard nothing related to the war or possible plans. Dad didn't let that bother him though, he just smiled and handed me a stick of dango. "We'll find it, don't worry."

I ate the treat and smiled when I noticed it was my favorite flavor. We did work our way down the booths and eventually wound up around the river. I noticed some people fishing and pointed at a booth that was selling fishing equipment. Dad smiled as he caught my idea, this way we would have an excuse for being close to the river. We got our poles and bait and were soon settled close to the docks.

Dad sat me in his lap to help me get the fishing line right, but at the same time tell me his plan. "We are going to fish for a little bit and you are going to become bored and run up to the docks against my orders. Then when you get there, get as close as you can to listen in and check the place out." I nodded and we put our plan into action.

I actually had fun fishing with dad though; he couldn't catch a thing while I had managed to catch a very small fish. Dad did catch something. I laughed at his expression as he brought his line out of the water. "You caught a shoe daddy, if you try again maybe you can get a pair!"

He glared at me before lunging and catching me around the waist and pulling me close to him. "Kin, I brought you into this world and I can take you out! Don't try me midget!"

I laughed with him and for the first time in a long time felt happy. I was happy to be with my dad and pretend that we didn't have a care in the world. Then I saw dad's signal and knew it was time to put our plan into action.

I waited a couple of more minutes before leaving his side and walking towards the docks. "Don't go far Kin!"

"I won't daddy!" I ran towards the docks, making sure to look back at Dad so it would seem like I was deliberately disobeying him. No one was around the storage areas, so I quickly made my way across one and peered into the crack at the bottom of the door. I saw a couple of ninja, two females and one male, pacing and peering intently at something on the desk. I decided I needed to get into that room, so I put my acting skills to work and pretended to be lost.

I forced tears into my eyes to make them water by biting my lip and rubbed my nose 'til I was sure it was red. I whimpered loudly before calling out in a broken voice. "Daddy! Daddy where did you go? Daddy?"

The ninja were instantly alerted and came outside to find me looking up at them with misery written across my young face. I must have been convincing because the Iwa Kunoichi gasped and instantly picked me up. I clung to her neck. "Pretty lady, do you know where my daddy is?"

I watched in hidden glee as she blushed and gently bounced me up and down in hopes of soothing my tears. She paced back over to the desk and I could see the thing they were looking at.

I committed it to memory and would tell dad about it later. The kunoichi brought me out of my thoughts. "Sweetheart, what's your name?"

I made my bottom lip tremble as I told her. "Tanaka Kin."

She cooed at me and I resisted the urge to gag. "You are so cute, who's your daddy pretty baby?"

Yep, I was purging my ears after I got back to the motel. "Daddy is Tanaka Tomi."

She caressed my cheek before sitting me on the desk and giving me an excellent view of the papers attached to the walls, which bore information like what was in the storage containers. Quite a couple of them said just simply Iwa goods. I mentally smirked. Iwa should learn not to be so obvious in their labeling. The male ninja in the room looked me up and down before saying, "Chi, get the kid out of here. Go find his parents and hurry back. We have stuff to do."

Chi huffed before putting me on the floor and grasping my hand. I saw dad had taken to trying to find me. I could hear his frantic searching. "Have you seen a little boy about this tall and looks a lot like me?"

I let go of the Iwa ninja's hand and ran to him. "Daddy!"

He grinned a secret grin before pulling me into a hug and "threatening" me. "Never, ever do that again! I was so worried."

Chi walked up and smiled. "I found him over by the docks and he was no trouble. Poor thing, I bet he scared himself so bad he'll never leave your side again."

Dad flirted shamelessly with the kunoichi, thanking her for finding his wayward son before grasping my hand and pulling me away towards the hustle of the festival. He patted my head and I understood the meaning.

We visited more booths and had more fun before heading back to the room and dad started pumping me for information. "What did you find?"

I sat on the bed cross-legged and told him. "There are storage containers that house goods marked 'Iwa Goods.' Could be anything, but it was the location of these goods that surprised me."

"How?"

"They are not located together. It's almost like they are trying to not put all of their eggs in one basket. If their secret was found they could easily go to the other storage containers while the other one is getting attacked." Dad nodded and I continued. "They also had this piece of paper on the desk. Dad, it was their supply lines. They are already moving supplies across Kusagakure and setting up more checkpoints. At that rate they will be to Fire Country soon."

Dad stood up and paced before looking at me and ruffling my hair. "Go to sleep Kakashi, you did very well today." I nodded and lay down to sleep.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo waited until Kakashi was sleeping before he produced a clone and left it to guard his son. He then eased out of the room and out into the night air. He needed to do some undercover work and the best place to go was right in front of him. "Hmm, Kiko's House of Ladies."

Sakumo entered the smoky establishment and soon found himself in a private room with a couple of Kiko's Ladies. The White Fang of Konoha used his charm to distract the ladies before slipping a drug into their drinks, one designed to loosen the lips and make one forget.

He needed to get information about these shinobi and what better way than through the women he knew that the Rock ninja's used. He knew from listening to Jiraiya that there was more than one reason ninja's frequented these places and one of those reasons was to talk or more or less brag about their abilities. Women like the ones around him knew the secrets of every village and every town and all you had to do was listen if you wanted the right information.

Sakumo smiled at the women, but he never touched them as he started his interrogation. "So ladies, tell me about the docks."

After Sakumo got the information from the ladies he went down to the docks and peered into one of the open windows. His face split into a grin as he saw the words 'Iwa goods.'

"Jackpot!"

Minato took the report from the nurse and opened the file.

He had taken Naru's blood sample to the hospital after he had taken it during their first meeting together at the ramen stand. He held his breath as he read over the file before closing the folder with a satisfied nod to the nurse. He didn't have the authority to call a fast blood test so he had to wait for the results. They were worth the wait.

Minato's main thought leaving the hospital was if Naru knew she was his daughter.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I moaned as I tried to get out of bed, it hurt so badly. My muscles didn't want to cooperate. Of course, that's what happens when your substitute sensei makes you run 15 laps around the village. I honestly don't know how I survived yesterday and I even checked my pulse to make sure it was still beating.

I finally managed to roll myself out of bed and stepped into the shower, hoping the hot water would work the soreness out of my muscles. It didn't work, but that was just fine because what doesn't kill you makes you stronger right? I shook those thoughts away and walked into the kitchen for breakfast and wondered what sensei would have for me to do today.

I was eating cereal when a knock sounded on the door and when I opened it there was a messenger toad there. The note on the toad said to meet Minato-sensei at the Hokage's office. Okay, I was nervous. I hoped it was just for a mission or something like that.

I got dressed and dashed to the Hokage Tower. When I got there the Hokage was staring intently at Minato-sensei who looked deep in thought.

"Naru please sit down, we have a lot to discuss today." I gulped because his tone suggested that I was not going to like where this conversation was going. "Naru, Minato here had a test done using your blood."

I raised an eyebrow at my sensei. "Isn't that stealing?"

The Hokage laughed. "I guess it is, but what we found is that Minato is your biological father."

I froze. "I know."

Minato-sensei whipped around. "You knew and didn't tell me?"

I frantically began trying to come up with a story and soon had a good one. "My mother told me she met you one night while on her way home from work and you were so handsome that she couldn't help but take you with her. She said something about you stuck out and she craved it. I was conceived and you left, leaving only your name and memories. We did well for a long time and I had a very loving home. Then my mom grew very sick. The doctors couldn't help her nor did the medicines. She knew she was going to die, so she had me trained by an ex-ninja in town hoping I could protect myself when she was gone. On her deathbed she made me promise to come to Konoha to continue my ninja education, becoming everything I could be. She forbade me to tell you I was yours. She said she didn't want to ruin whatever happiness you had found and that I'd find my own without you. Please Sensei, don't be angry at me. I was only doing her will."

I even managed to get a couple of tears out of my speech. Minato-sensei was staring out of the window and the Hokage was looking at me, secretly congratulating me on making the story up.

The Hokage looked at us both before speaking. "Why don't you two take today and get acquainted with each other as father and daughter? It would help with the process."

We both nodded and I soon found myself at sensei's house with a cup of tea and a lot of questions. "I want to know about you Naru."

I sipped my tea before answering. "We already talked about me at our first meeting. I've told you everything."

He shook his head. "I mean, what do you want to do from here?"

I tilted my head and looked at him. "As in what are we going to do about this information?" He said yes and I sighed. "Do you want to keep it a secret for the time being?"

He sipped his tea before replying. "No. Actually, I want to shout to the heavens about the fact that I have a daughter, but at the same time I know my enemies are great. I think it would be wise to just keep it between us for now."

I nodded, but just had to ask. "You're not ashamed of me right?"

His eyes widened in surprise before he pulled me into his lap, placing a kiss on top of my head. I briefly tensed in his arms before relaxing. "I may be new at this, but there is one thing I do know. With a daughter like you, it would be impossible to be ashamed."

I smiled and placed my head against his shoulder. I now know what Kakashi was feeling the day he clung to his father like this and I have never felt more complete in my entire life.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I woke up the next morning and looked around before stopping; dad never woke me up for guard duty. I climbed off the bed and walked into the bathroom, still no dad. I was coming out when he walked through the door and I reached for my kunai.

"It's okay Kin, it's just me."

I sighed in relief and closed the door behind him. "Where have you been?"

He looked over me and sighed. "I got some very important information last night and after today's recon we should have everything we need to return back to Konoha. Now get dressed and let's go to the park. I left a clone here for a little while last night but those things only last long."

I soon found myself standing in front of a very large park on the other side of town by the ninja barracks. I clutched dad's hand as we walked by the open tents of the ninjas, my eyes taking in every sight and trying to find something of use to us.

Dad pulled me over to a bench and whispered in my ear. To others it would've looked like he was telling me to not run off. "My informant told me the master plans are in tent number 43. The ninja in there is one of the commanding officer's main consults. You are in luck. He has a son about your age and knows children. Get in there and get out before you are recognized."

I looked into his eyes before tugging on his hands. "When do I go?"

Dad stood up and placed me in his spot on the bench, kneeling in front of me so he could look at the tents without turning around. He fiddled with my boot. "You'll know him by the bright red hair and blue eyes. When he comes walking through here you go, and this time you can't play the same one you did last time okay?"

I nodded and took off to the other side of the playground where I could watch the road and at the same time look like I'm playing. Dad soon lifted his head to check my position and when he did, I saw the target.

He was a rather large man and his hair definitely made him stick out. Plus, by the way he was walking you could tell he thought a lot about himself. I bit my lip as I thought about my plan of action and looked to the ground to see if I had anything to work with. Then my eyes landed on a green ball. I grinned. Now I had the perfect plan.

I picked the ball up and began kicking it and playing with it. I kicked it closer to the road where the tents lined up and got even closer when I saw the number 43 engraved on one tent. I turned the ball around with my foot and let it get away from me a little bit. I watched as the man opened his tent flap to watch me and then I knew I had his attention.

I kicked the ball sloppily, letting it soar into the road and land beside his tent. I made my eyes water and raced towards the ball, completing my act by falling down and scraping my elbows. It stung and my knees throbbed, but I was in.

The man instantly got up, picking me and my ball up before bringing me into his tent. I was plopped down onto a soft bed and he grabbed my arms looking at the damage. "Hi little guy. I'm Abe Fudo. Let me take care of your scrapes."

I whimpered for the desired effect and the man gushed over me. Honestly, was I that adorable?

"What's your name little guy? And where is your mommy and daddy?"

I chewed my bottom lip before answering him. "I'm Tanaka Kin and my daddy was outside on the bench, but he didn't see me." I chose to ignore the mommy question.

Fudo nodded and reached into his pouch for bandages. "Well I'll have to be right back Kin because I'm out of bandages. Are you going to be alright in here?"

I nodded and gripped the ball as he left. I smiled he had closed the flap after he exited. I instantly got to work because I had no idea how long it would take for him to get the bandages. I saw the open scrolls on the table and grinned at their contents. He did have the master plans.

I went to work getting the other scrolls opened and smiled at each one; Iwa had a very well thought out battle plan. I opened the final scroll and read in big letters the words "Destruction of Konoha." I looked at the plans and stopped cold. They had insider information about the village. I snapped the scrolls shut and hopped back on the bed just in time for Fudo to come back through the flap.

"I've got the bandages Kin; here let me take care of those nasty scrapes."

I let the man clean the scrapes while my mind swirled with the new information I had gotten. Fudo let me go with my ball after I was done, making me promise to be more careful. I raced away from him and straight to dad. He looked in my eyes and picked me up so that I could lay my head on his shoulder and whisper to him what I had found. "Dad, there is a spy in Konoha."

I felt my father's arms tighten around me and I continued. "They are getting backing from an unnamed country and when I say backing I mean manpower and weapons, lots of supplies and even money. Dad, they have insider information about the village, not to mention information on our supply lines. Those will have to be changed."

Dad swiftly dodged people in the streets as we made our way to the motel. We would leave tonight because it was too risky leaving tomorrow. He carried me to the room and placed me on the bed before tearing through the room and getting our bags. I started packing them and soon we were ready to leave.

He looked at me before saying, "Once we leave the border we cannot stop Kakashi, we have to get to the village with our information."

I nodded and followed him out of the room. We didn't check out, we just left. It was morning by the time we made it to the border and coming out was a whole lot easier than getting in. I was exhausted by now and trying to keep up, but I couldn't no matter how much I wanted to.

Dad put me on his back and as soon as we were away from the borders, his white chakra roared to life and we were sprinting across the land.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I woke up the next morning in a bed that wasn't mine. I froze before remembering I had spent the night with my dad. A smile stretched across by face as I thought those words. I finally had a father. I got out of bed and walked into the kitchen to see him standing there cooking breakfast. I was going to greet him, but stopped. What do I call him? "Good morning!"

He smiled at me. "Good morning to you too Naru."

I sat at the table and asked him my question. "So what do I call you?"

He flipped the bacon over before answering. "Well, in public Sensei and if you want to you can call me dad or daddy or something like that."

I thought those words over and I knew exactly which one I would call him. "Okay daddy!"

He beamed at me before plating the bacon and sitting down to eat with me. "What do you say we go on a mission today?"

I looked up from eating and watched him sip his coffee. "A mission? What kind of mission?"

"It'll be D-ranked because you are only a Genin, but it'll give you something to do today that's different."

I nodded and told him that would be fine with me. "So can I go back to Sakumo-sensei's house and change? Because I wore this yesterday."

He laughed before waving me off. "Yeah, just meet me at the mission's desk after you are through."

I raced to the house and was dressed in record time before running back to the mission's desk. I came to a stop and saw that he was already there waiting for me with a scroll in his hand.

"Ahh, Naru today we are going to paint the outside of Eto Akira's house for her. Do you think you can do it?"

I nodded and followed him to a very large house on the outskirts of the village.

The thing was like three stories tall and lots of feet wide! My eyes were the size of saucers and Minato-sensei was laughing at me. I glared and picked up the paintbrush and began painting. This was going to be a long day and it was a long day. It took me all day to paint that house because the crazy lady changed the color on me in the middle of painting.

The only reason she lived was because I was too tired to call on Kyuubi's power. So I started over and finally dragged myself to the mission's desk to give them the report. Minato-sensei showed up and treated me to supper and then asked me why I didn't use clones to help me paint the house.

I dropped my chopsticks and banged my head against the table. I had forgotten about them. He laughed at me before walking me back to Sakumo-sensei's house and wishing me goodnight. I walked into the silent house, wishing those two would hurry back from their mission.

I hated to admit it, but I missed them.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I asked Dad to stop once during our race back to Konoha and that was so I could run with him. He looked at me for a second before sighing. "Are you sure?"

I nodded and flared my own chakra to race behind him, but he stopped me and led me to a nearby river.

"We have to get this color out of our hair before we get back to Konoha. We are far enough away from Iwa that we won't be recognized, but whoever the spy is, we don't need them to know about Kin and Tomi."

We had showered our entire stay in the Iwa town, but we tried not to scrub the color out of our hair. I plunged my hair underwater and began using the soap to get the color off. It took a lot of tries but eventually my silver was back, so was dad's.

We finally made it into Konoha by nightfall. I don't think I had ever been so happy to see those wooden gates as I was at that moment. I was exhausted and wanted to be Kakashi again, not the adorable Kin. Dad did let me put my mask back on once we were in sight of Konoha. We left the village gates and went directly to the Hokage.

Dad and I saluted before he started the report. "Hokage-sama, Iwa has direct access to the supply lines going through Kusagakure and according to our findings there is a spy inside Konoha."

The Hokage dropped his papers and stared dad and I straight in the eyes. "Sit down you two, we have a long night ahead of us."


	8. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I rubbed my eyes and listened quietly as Dad and the Hokage discussed our findings.

"Hokage-sama, the storage areas on the docks are loaded with weapons, kunai and shuriken for days. They have also stocked up on medical supplies and I know I saw something that looked suspiciously like boxes of poisons."

The Hokage nodded before turning to me. "Kakashi, what of your findings?"

I blinked after hearing my name and stood before the Hokage. I suddenly felt very small because at my current position I couldn't see over the top of his desk. "Hokage-sama, the scrolls had their master plans in them. They plan to tear across Kusagakure in the hopes of reaching Fire Nation. They have very detailed maps of our supply lines, including our outposts and checkpoints. Sir, they also have a crude map of Konoha and it has the evacuation routes on it as well as the safe houses for the civilians. They are also trying to figure out a weakness in the walls that surround our village."

He nodded, suddenly looking very tired and older than his years. "So we have a snitch in Konoha. Thank you both, you are dismissed."

We both saluted and walked out of the office and into the darkness of the night. I looked up at dad and saw the weariness that had set in his eyes since we had gotten back to Konoha. I sighed and walked in silence beside him before reaching for his hand. I wrapped my small hand around his larger one and he squeezed it gently before speaking. "I never wanted you to grow up in a war 'kashi, but it looks like my worst fears are coming true."

I blinked at him and continued beside him in silence. I was losing my memories faster now and I knew it. Somewhere deep down inside I remember someone saying those exact words to me, but I don't remember why. I mentally shook my head as we finally made it back to the house and Dad let go of my hand to open the front door.

When he opened it Naru came bounding down the stairs, wrapping her arms around Dad's legs. "I missed you guys so much!"

Dad smiled and patted her head. "How was training with Minato?"

"Torture, 5 laps around Konoha for every trap I set off. It was harsh and I still hurt from it."

I walked into the room. "Good to know you had fun."

She stuck her tongue out at me before giving me a hug as well. "So how was the mission?"

Dad stopped and thought about how he was going to answer her. "Successful. It's late, so why don't we all get to bed."

Naru looked like she wanted to protest, but instead nodded and headed to the stairs.

Dad stopped me. "Kakashi, the mission was classified, you understand what that means right?" I nodded and he smiled. "Of course you do. Now get in bed."

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I could see the change in Sakumo-sensei when I asked about the mission. Whatever happened on the mission was classified and I knew better than to push the issue. I went to my room to lie down and was getting comfortable when my door creaked open. I sat up in bed as Kakashi walked into the room and shut the door behind him. "Kakashi?"

He waved at me and then sat on the floor beside my bed. I got out of my bed and sat beside him. "Naru, how did everything go with Minato-sensei?"

I sighed. "Your sensei is a thief."

Kakashi raised an eyebrow at me. "Care to explain that statement?"

"He stole my blood and had a blood test done. He found out I was his daughter."

Kakashi jumped up and began pacing. "Okay, this isn't the end of the world. So he knows. This could work to our advantage in the long run. How did he take the news?"

I smiled and closed my eyes. "It was just like I imagined it would be; he welcomed me with open arms and said he was glad to find out about me. I had to come up with a story about my mother though."

Kakashi laughed. "What did you tell him?"

I told Kakashi everything I had told my dad about my fictional mother. I could tell he was impressed with my story.

"It's actually very good. You gave just enough information to make it vague, but at the same time you didn't give away too much, which could make your story false. Good job Naru!"

I nodded before speaking, "He wants to be a part of my life, but he doesn't want his enemies to find out about me. He told me I could call him dad in private."

My partner chewed over this new information before turning towards me. "Naru, I can't tell you a lot, but I can tell you this, everything about our mission is fixing to get a whole lot harder. The Hokage's going to make an announcement soon and it will change our lives as we know it."

I knew exactly what he was talking about. I had read about Konoha's history or rather Iruka-sensei had pounded into my head by the time I left the Academy. "The Third Great Shinobi War." He nodded and I groaned. "We are going to be in the middle of a war scarecrow, what are we going to do?"

I watched as Kakashi walked to the window and gazed out into the night, deep in thought. The way the moonlight hit his silver hair made him seem like he was glowing as he answered my question. "Survive Naru, all we can do is survive."

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

The next couple of days passed by very quickly for Sakumo. He alternated his time between training Kakashi and Naru in Kenjutsu and going on missions for the village. He felt like he hadn't sat down in days. The most recent of his missions dealt with changing the supply lines and evacuation routes. Nothing The White Fang of Konoha couldn't handle, but it was tiring work. He hadn't even had time to talk to Minato about Naru and see how she did.

So you can imagine Sakumo's secret relief when the Hokage requested all Jounin-sensei to meet in his office for a special meeting at four that afternoon. He left those two with Minato and went to the meeting for the both of them.

Sakumo bounded up the stairs and walked into the room just in time to hear the Hokage greet everyone. "I'm glad you all could make it here today. As you know, we are soon to be in a war with Iwa. The council and I have decided to hold the Chunin Exams earlier this year. We are in need of Chunin and this is the perfect opportunity to hold the exams before the situation with Iwa heats up."

A Jounin to Sakumo's left raised his hand to question the Hokage. "Sir, what is the exam going to be like this year?"

The Hokage stood up from behind his desk and walked to stand in front of it. "The exam this year has been modified to fit the dire situation we are now in. The exam will last one week and have one main event and one smaller event. The main event will take place in the Forest of Death over five days. Each competitor will be given a coin half with a marking on it."

The Hokage held up four half-coin pieces. "Fire matches with Water and Wind matches with Rock. The point is for the competitors to find the other half of their coin and whoever has the other half becomes their partner for the rest of the exam. Now the hard part is that once a two man team has been established, they have to take away the last two coin halves from another team by any means necessary, except killing."

Some of the Jounin looked confused so the Hokage demonstrated what he meant. He handed the four coin halves to four different Jounin. "Now, match up." They did. "Okay, now to complete the mission one team has to possess all four coin halves."

One of the teams handed their completed coin to the other team. "Now that you have the completed set you are ready for the final part, which involves this scroll."

He pulled out a small scroll that had a spot for the two completed coins to fit in. "These scrolls will be hidden throughout the forest and be guarded by non-lethal traps, which the two-man team will have to disarm if they want one. The scroll can only be opened within the tower in the middle of the forest. If it's opened before making it to the tower that team is disqualified. The two completed coins open the scroll, giving the two-man team the instructions for the next part of the exam. Now if a team loses their completed coin to another team then they can try to steal a completed set back from another team. Once the five days are up and all the competitors have opened their scrolls, they are given a day of rest before the next part of the exam."

The Hokage motioned for the four Jounin to return to their spots. "The second part of the exam is only being done because we are heading for war. We are having our T&I team perform basic interrogation tactics on the Chunin hopefuls. We can't have our secrets spilled to our enemies. The final day will be a review by me, the Fire Daimyo and a selection of Jounin. The competitors will not be present for the review, but they will know by the end of the day if they made Chunin or not."

The room was quiet as the Jounin thought over the changes to the Chunin Exam. Sakumo didn't disagree with it. The T&I part was new, but he understood that new Chunin needed to know what they were getting into with a war. Sakumo asked the next question. "When is the Chunin Exam?"

The Hokage turned to look in his direction. "I announce to the village tomorrow about the war with Iwa. We will hold the Chunin Exams two days later. That should give everyone enough time to get their Genin up to speed and for the examiners to get prepared."

The other Jounins talked amongst themselves and Sakumo closed his eyes in thought. Was Naru ready for this? His lips turned into a smile as he got his answer.

"Now please come forward and nominate your Genin for the Chunin Exam if you think they are ready."

Sakumo watched the Jounins stand before the Hokage and announce their Chunin hopefuls. Two of the three rookie teams were nominated, as was one team from last year and six other Genin whose teammates had already achieved the rank of Chunin.

Sakumo took a deep breath and stood before the Hokage. "I, Hatake Sakumo, nominate Uzu Naru for the Chunin Exams."

He then stepped back, knowing Naru would succeed no matter who her partner was. The Hokage handed the paperwork to the Jounins who nominated their Genin, reminding them to not tell their students the details of the exam and dismissed them. Sakumo stepped out of the office and noticed the sun setting in the sky. Had the meeting really lasted that long? The White Fang then turned towards the training grounds to see Naru and Kakashi's progress.

Minato was currently making Kakashi and Naru run through their Kenjutsu steps. Both of them were making amazing progress and would soon be able to use their actual swords. Minato watched Naru attack Kakashi with her bokken and couldn't help but feel proud as she used her smaller size to throw him off balance and knock the bokken out of his hand.

She grinned at Kakashi and handed it back. Minato watched as the boy got a devilish look in his eyes before attacking Naru. At first he was setting up to strike downwards, so Naru turned her sword to block, but at the last minute he changed directions and struck from underneath the bokken. Hers flew out of her hands and into the air before Kakashi caught it.

"Okay you two, enough of that. Let's do some Taijutsu."

They were sparring as Sakumo walked into the clearing. "Hey Sakumo, I need to talk to you. Do you have a minute?"

He nodded and turned to where Naru and Kakashi were sparring. "We'll be right back, and don't kill each other."

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I stopped the spar and watched as Sakumo-sensei and Dad, whoa it was kind of weird to think of him like that, walked out of the clearing. I figured it was a good time to welcome Dad into our circle. I grinned at Kakashi who was looking at me funny. "You game Scarecrow?"

His eyes widened as he heard me. "Prank Minato-sensei? I thought you'd never suggest it."

We plotted while they were talking and I knew exactly what they were talking about, me.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Minato walked Sakumo away from the sparring pair and sat on the ground. "She's my daughter."

Sakumo rolled his eyes and Minato wanted to point out that Kakashi had inherited that trait from him. "I hate to say it, but I told you so. Told Kushina yet?"

Minato shook his head. "You, me, Naru and the Hokage are the only ones who know."

Sakumo sat beside his friend. "Kakashi will have it figured out before long, if he doesn't already know. I mean he was the one that found her."

"I guess they are pretty close too, so I'm sure she told him already."

Sakumo nodded in agreement. "So are you going to take her home with you and are you her legal guardian?"

Minato ran his hands through his hair. "No, not yet at least. I mean, technically I'm her legal guardian, but I put you down as next of kin in case something happens to her and I can't get there. I want her to stay at your house until I tell Kushina and until I have all the rough edges smoothed out. Plus, I don't know what my enemies would do if they knew about her."

The sound of a girlish yelp sounded throughout the clearing followed by, "You did that on purpose scarecrow!"

"I did not; you shouldn't have turned around while I was kicking!"

"Well I had to stop myself from falling into the dirt, which I did anyway because of your foot!"

Sakumo sighed before standing and helping Minato up. "We better break them up before they kill each other."

Minato stalked into the clearing and roared, "ALL RIGHT YOU TWO KNOCK IT OFF!"

Minato blinked as he stared into the empty field. "Naru? Kakashi?"

Just about that time two voices rang out. "Suiton: Mizurappa!"

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

Naru and I raced through the hand signs as Minato-sensei came into the clearing and we let out a weaker version of the Water Release: Violent Water Wave. It was just enough water to soak him, but not enough to hurt him.

I heard Dad's laughter from behind Minato-sensei. "I think you've just been initiated into their circle of friendship."

Minato-sensei rang the water out of the tail of his shirt before speaking. "Okay you two, you got me, but remember this. I may not get you back tomorrow or the next day, but mark my words. I will get you two back."

I knew we should have taken his threat seriously, but I couldn't stop myself from laughing at the mixture of shock and pride on his face at what we had done. Dad finally managed to get his laughter under control and told Naru and me to head home, that he had something to tell Naru tonight. I nodded and off we went. It was a good feeling to be able to laugh, even though the threat of war was upon us because who knew how long it would be before we were too hardened to laugh.

Naru tapped me on the shoulder, breaking my thoughts. "Come on and I'll teach you how to cook, because this time around you are not living off of takeout and instant meals."

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo was still shaking with laughter as he watched Minato attempt to dry off with a fire jutsu. "Minato, I nominated Naru for the Chunin Exam."

He nodded his head. "I figured you would, she'll do fine. I believe in her."

Sakumo grinned at his friend before taking off towards home; he couldn't wait to tell Naru the big news. He walked into the house to see Kakashi and Naru standing on stools in front of the stove.

"Now take the roasted sesame seeds and add them to the noodles, Kakashi." Kakashi lifted the skillet and poured the sesame seeds into the udon noodles as Naru had instructed. She then grabbed the bowl full of peppers. "These are peppers. Add them in with the sesame seeds and udon noodles and it'll be done." Kakashi glared at her before taking the peppers and stirring them into the pot with the other ingredients.

Sakumo walked up behind them and took the spoon from the pot and tasted the food. "Hmm, tastes good. What is it?"

Naru answered. "Sesame Udon Noodles. Will you please set the table Sensei?"

Sakumo nodded before getting the bowls and drinks and setting them on the table. He watched Kakashi try to pick the hot and heavy pot up and get down from the stool.

"Wait, I've got it 'kashi."

Using potholders he took the pot from his son and sat the dish on the table.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

We had been eating for about 10 minutes when Sakumo-sensei started talking about the Chunin Exams. "So Naru, I nominated you for the Chunin Exams."

I choked on my udon and Kakashi patted me on the back while snickering, might I add. "Really?"

He nodded. "It's going to be different this year though, a lot different, but you'll do fine."

"Why is it going to be different Sensei?"

He sighed before putting his chopsticks down. "Naru, tomorrow the Hokage is going to announce to the village that Iwa has declared war on us. Since Konoha has a need for Chunin, the Hokage is holding the exams early and differently. You'll find out more on the first day, if you chose to take it."

He pulled out the paper and a pen and handed it to me. I took both and began filling out the information before giving it back to him. He looked over it before commenting. "Your birthday is October 10th?" I nodded and he grinned. "So you'll be seven in about a month."

I blinked and so did Kakashi, it just occurred to us that we hadn't even bothered to check the date. "What is today's date dad?"

"It's September 8th. Your birthday is in a week Kakashi."

I shook my head before grinning at Kakashi. "Getting old?" He rolled his eyes at me and continued eating. "Sensei, when is the Chunin Exams?"

"In three days."

I stopped eating. "In three days? That's a little early. How long is it supposed to last?"

He raised an eyebrow at me. "Didn't you read the paper you signed?"

I blushed because honestly I didn't. "No sir, I wanted you to explain it."

He chuckled. "It'll last a week and there are two events, a large event and a smaller event. You will be graded on how well you do in both stages and if you do well enough, you will become a Chunin."

I nodded and finished eating before placing my bowl in the sink. "I'm going to bed now. I want to get up early in the morning and get some training in before the village wide assembly."

They said their goodnights and I went upstairs to my room to think. I was taking the Chunin Exams and apparently it was very different from the one I had taken.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I finished eating around the same time dad did. He took my bowl from me and went to wash the dishes.

I pulled the stool beside him and dried while he washed. "Dad, how do you think Naru's going to do?"

He handed me a bowl. "She'll do fine. It all depends on if she concentrates and how well she works with others. Don't worry about her. Minato's not and neither am I."

I froze. "So you know about her parentage?"

Dad nodded. "Yeah, Minato told me today, but I saw it the day they sat beside each other. You would have had to be blind to not see it." I grinned at him and dried another plate. "Kakashi, what do you want to do for your birthday?"

"I don't care as long as I get to spend it with you."

I heard Dad sigh. "I'll see what I can do, but with the way the Hokage has had me running, I don't think we will get the whole day." I nodded sadly. I vaguely remember him not being there for my other seventh birthday either. "But don't worry, because I got you a gift that you are going to love."

I looked at him quizzically. Just what was he going to give me? We finished up the dishes and headed to bed. Everyone was so exhausted from training and missions that all we wanted to do was sleep whenever we got the chance. I stretched as I got in the bed and snuggled underneath the covers. My last conscious thought was wondering just what dad had planned for my gift.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

Sakumo-sensei, Dad, Kakashi and I stood outside the Hokage Tower the next morning, waiting for the announcement that would change everything. The civilians and non-Jounin ninjas were all lost as to what the Hokage wanted to say, but in just a few short minutes everyone would know the cold hard truth.

Kakashi tapped my shoulder and pointed to the top of the Hokage Tower. The Third had taken the stage.

"People of Konoha, I come to you today with bad news, we are staring war straight in the face with the Iwa. They have declared war on us and are currently plotting to cut across Kusagakure in the hopes of making it to our village."

The fear filled whispers and talking increased at these words. "Rest assured, people of Konoha, we will not take this standing down. We will fight and we will win!"

I listened as the people around us cheered. I was amazed at how their fears were comforted by the Hokage. The Hokage continued telling everyone they would sacrifice some important things, but the victory at the end would ensure our sacrifices were not in vain. I knew what the Hokage meant by sacrifice. He wasn't talking about missing out on certain goods; no, he was talking about lives.

Ninja were going to die in this war. I suddenly felt sick to my stomach. I was going to have to kill or be killed. I felt Dad's hand on my shoulder. "Naru, are you alright?"

I nodded my head and pushed those thoughts away. I was a ninja and killing was a part of my profession. I tried to concentrate on what the Hokage was saying about the Chunin Exams. He mentioned they would be different and be held in two days, but I just couldn't listen to him or anyone else. I was too deep in thought.

Sakumo-sensei grabbed my arm and placed a hand on my forehead underneath my headband. "She's fine Minato, just a little pale is all. No fever whatsoever."

I blinked and grinned sheepishly. "I'm sorry I was just thinking."

Kakashi looked at me funny, but never commented and before long the announcement was over.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I watched Naru out of the corner of my eye. Ever since the Hokage had said the word 'sacrifice' she had been getting paler and paler. I was afraid she was really sick. I thought back over what could have made her feel bad, then it hit me like a ton of bricks; Naru doesn't remember her first kill.

I barely remember mine, but I know I had one. I watched as her eyes got glassy and knew she was in deep thought about it. I sighed and turned my attention back to the Hokage only to have it stolen again as Naru started sweating. I was reaching for her when Dad and Minato-sensei took care of her.

I would need to talk to her later about this. She couldn't freeze in the middle of the battle, but somewhere in the back of my mind something told me my dad would take care of that. I blinked and tried to remember what those words meant but when nothing came I shook the feeling off. I would just have to talk to her myself.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

Two days later I stood in front of the Forest of Death with Sakumo-sensei beside me, grinning at me. "Good luck, Naru. You'll do fine. Just remember teamwork is the key."

I nodded and walked forward as the examiner called us to the front. I looked around and saw there were 16 of us in all.

"Okay you Chunin wannabes! Let me tell you about this exam. You get to spend five fun filled days of running from giant, bloodthirsty monsters, other ninjas and, not to mention, your own fears. You will each be given a half of one of these coins."

The male examiner showed us four coin halves. "Fire goes with Water and Wind goes with Rock. Your objective is to find your coin's matching half."

The examiner put two of the halves together to complete the coin. "Now once you find the person who has your matching half, you two are then partners for the rest of the exam, which means, if you can't count, that there will be eight teams of two. Now to the second part of your objective; the two man teams will now have to find the other completed coin to make a complete set."

He brought up the two completed coins. "If you didn't understand what I just said, raise your hand."

One girl timidly raised her hand. "Listen close to me girly, if your team has the Fire and Water coin, then you need the Wind and Rock coin to have a complete set. Got it?"

The girl nodded and shrunk back from the yelling examiner. "Okay, you have to get the coin from the other team by any means necessary, except killing. When you have your two completed coins, your next job is to look for a scroll that looks like this. These scrolls are hidden throughout the forest." He held up the scroll for all the genin to see.

"Do not try to open this scroll before you reach the finish line, if you do you will be disqualified. Now the fun part is the end. You have to get your completed scroll and coins to the tower without having another team take them from you. The teams that lose their completed coin are more than welcome to try and take it back from you before the end of the five days. Once you get to the tower you open the scroll by placing the two completed coins into their proper spots and then you will receive the instructions for the next and final stage. Does anyone not understand the directions?"

No one moved or raised a hand. "Okay, come in through this tent and you will be given your coin half. Remember you have five days to reach the tower, good luck."

I gulped and looked around me. I didn't know a single person here, but I had done the math and at most only eight people would survive this round to make it to the second.

I watched the line shorten in front of me and sighed as I thought about Kakashi's words from this morning. "You'll do fine Naru. Just get out there and kick butt. Don't worry about the killing, and don't give me that look, I know what you were thinking the other day. You don't have to kill anyone in the Chunin Exams, but Naru it is part of being a ninja. The big thing about what separates us from monsters is that we don't enjoy killing and we feel guilty about it. We are human, Naru, and that humanity keeps us sane."

I smiled as I noticed it was my turn to walk into the tent. I held my head high, walked into the flap and a female examiner put a coin half into my palm. I stared at it and smiled, Wind. Of course I would get the one for my affinity. I hid the coin half in my clothes and stared into the Forest of Death. I was going to become a Chunin.

I raced forward, plotting the entire time. I knew I had to find someone with the Rock coin half, but I didn't know exactly where to start. I stopped as I got a brilliant idea. I used my chakra to climb up one of the tall trees and sat on the branch. I would simply wait until someone came by, then I would jump down and see if they had the coin I'd need.

Then I started thinking. What if I was the only person who went this way? I smiled and decided that I had nearly unlimited chakra, thanks to fur ball, and I could make a couple of clones to wait at strategic locations along the Forest. I calculated what direction the beginning was at and had 20 clones set out in a straight line to stretch across the forest. I had been about the eighth one in, so there should be eight more after me.

I sighed and rested against the tree trunk. I hated waiting games, especially when my energy was just bursting to let lose. I closed my eyes and rested before I was interrupted by my one of my clones disappearing after asking to see a girl's coin. Unfortunately it was Water.

Then another one of my clones disappeared and I was hit with an image of a boy, one that looked vaguely familiar, but he was missing something. I grinned when I realized he had shown my clone the Rock coin half. I immediately went to the location of the boy the clone had shown me. He was still staring at the spot my clone had been.

He looked me up and down, before shaking his head. "I was kind of hoping someone had henged a clone to look like you little girl because there is no way you have that much chakra to pull off a Kage no Bunshin. Of course, this would be just my luck. I finally prove myself to my sensei and instead of pairing up with someone useful, I get the little girl. Sweetheart, are you even potty trained yet?"

I'll be honest, I was ticked off at him. How dare he judge me because of my age? Didn't he know I could tear him to pieces? I growled and gave him my best glare as I looked at his appearance. He was about 11 with dark brown hair and dark eyes. I knew I had seen him somewhere before, but where?

"Look, are you going to stand there and insult me or do you have the Rock half?" He pulled his out and I pulled my Wind half out.

He groaned loudly. "I guess this means we are partners, just great. Do try to keep up. I would hate to have to carry you. You do know how to use chakra right?"

My left eyebrow twitched. I officially knew Kakashi's pain of being the youngest person on a team. I was going to smack some sense into him when I saw a giant Venus Fly Trap right behind him. We had walked our way down the path by the tree while he was insulting me. I motioned for him to stop.

"What are you doing now? Playing charades?"

"No, stop, the trap behind you."

He rolled his eyes at me and turned around quickly, walking right into the mouth of the thing. His eyes widened as he struggled within the plant's grasp.

"Calm down!"

I raced forward with my kunai drawn and slashed at the underbelly of the plant. It did no good. I watched as the boy's head sunk beneath the opening of the plant's mouth. "Oh no you don't!"

I pumped chakra into the plant and watched as my chakra caused the plant to blow up before popping and spilling my partner onto the forest floor. He was panting heavily as I helped pull him to his feet. He smiled at me before apologizing. "Thanks for saving me; I'm sorry about what I said before."

I waved it off. "No big deal, but I was about ten seconds from kicking some sense into that hardhead of yours. I'm Uzu Naru by the way."

He tried to wipe the slimy mess off of himself before speaking. "I'm Namiashi Raido."

I blinked as I heard his name; he was missing his scar, that's why I didn't recognize him. I held out my Wind half and he held out his Rock half; they fit perfectly together. He gave them to me to hold. "I would just lose them. Now we have to find the other coin set."

I nodded and looked towards where the sun would be if it weren't for the trees. It was steadily getting darker as night fell. "We might want to set up camp for the night. I would hate to run into another team or something worse than that plant back there."

I watched as Raido paled before quickly agreeing. We soon found what looked to be like an old cave. It was small but would provide plenty of protection from the elements, not to mention we were completely hidden from view. Raido and I sat in the back of the cave with our backs touching the cool rock.

"I'll take first watch Naru."

I nodded before telling him, "That's fine. Tomorrow we can work on getting the other coin and we might also want to be on the lookout for those scrolls. It wouldn't hurt to get one before we have both coin sets because if I lost my coin I would find a scroll and stake it out in the hopes of catching a team with a complete set."

Raido clapped my shoulder before heading closer to the cave entrance. "I'm kind of glad you are my partner Naru, easy to talk to and smart."

I waved off his compliment, knowing he was trying to make up to me for the insults.

I laid my head down and drifted off into an uneasy sleep.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I sighed as I sat at the guard house and did gate duty. It was possibly the most boring, mind numbing mission ever given to any ninja. I briefly wondered what had I done to tick off the Hokage. I shook those thoughts away and watched the villagers move below me.

I hated guard duty for two reasons: one, it was boring and two, the other guards were at least 20 years old. We had nothing in common and a lot of times they would sit me beside the window while they talked about things in hushed tones and giggles.

I sighed as I thought about that. Honestly, I was a ninja and knew about grown up stuff. I felt like I was missing something though. I sighed as I picked through the memories I had left. I was losing more and more every day, but an orange book stood out in my mind so strongly. I really wonder what that book was about and why it was so important.

I sighed again and looked towards the Forest of Death. I really hoped Naru was doing all right.


	9. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

Raido woke me up halfway through the night for my turn at guard duty. "It's been really quiet and no one's come around yet. I figured the first night would be the busiest, but apparently I was mistaken."

I told him to get some sleep as I walked to the mouth of the cave and leaned against the rock. We hadn't dared to start a fire, because it would not only attract animals but it would attract people.

I closed my eyes in thought and tried to think of a plan, but nothing good was coming to me. We accomplished one half of the objective, so the next step would be to find the other completed coin. I sighed, hopefully everyone already paired up and we wouldn't come across just a Fire piece or something like that. I knew we would have to engage the other team if we wanted their coin, but what would we do if they had the same coin as ours? I guess we could keep an extra one in the event ours was lost, but that seemed unfair to the other competitors.

"Kit, this is war and everything is fair in war."

I groaned. Why did he have to decide to give his input now of all times? "Do you wait for times like this to talk and give me your 'oh so wise' advice, fur ball?"

I could hear him growl. "I'm a centuries old demon fox, I've been around longer than you have and it would be smart for you to take the 'oh so wise' advice I freely give. I can't send us back in time again for another do over."

"Okay fur ball, but you've got to answer my question first. Why have you been so quiet lately?"

I listened carefully as he sighed. "I'm still recovering from the jutsu I used. Another reason it's used as a last resort is because it takes so much out of the performer."

I nodded. "Okay what 'advice' do you have for me today?"

He was oddly silent before speaking in soft tones. "War changes everything Naru; it will be long, hard and dangerous. You have to stop thinking about fair and unfair and start thinking about kill or be killed. Those Iwa ninjas are not going to think twice about slamming a kunai into your skull if they have the chance. I'll still help, but in my weakened state I can't do much. If the other teams can't hold on to their coin, do you really want them out there fighting beside you?"

I was shocked. His advice was actually good and I noticed he called me Naru. He had never called me by my name before, so I knew everything he said was serious. "Okay Kyuubi, I'll take your advice this one time. How about you go back to sleep because I'm going to need you in good shape later."

Kyuubi gradually became silent and I was left to think my battle plan out as the sun began to rise.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I yawned and managed to drag myself out of bed the next morning. Gate duty always made me feel lazy. I took a quick shower and dressed before making my way downstairs. I was still rubbing my eyes when I walked into the kitchen to see my father and Minato-sensei sitting at the table talking in hushed tones.

I heard them talk about Naru's training, something about disarming traps and cloning frogs, as I sat at the table. Dad nodded towards me and continued listening to Minato-sensei's story of Naru getting caught in three of the traps. "She did very well locating and disarming the traps. She'll make an excellent demolitions expert, especially with the fact that she's a prankster."

Dad nodded before pointing towards me. "Naru and Kakashi need to start working on their Kenjutsu. With those swords they are destined to be partners because the katanas work off of each other."

They talked like I wasn't even in the room. I sighed and got something to eat for breakfast while they continued talking.

"Well, you know Naru's going to eventually be placed with two other teammates. Possibly two Chunin from the exam, which means you're going to get two more students eventually."

Dad waved it off. "We'll cross that bridge when we get to it, but you know it'll be another six months before that happens. I talked to the Hokage about it when he first mentioned her to me. He said we would have six months after the Chunin Exam then he would give me two more students. Something about her age, I guess it's just like your situation with Kakashi."

I wanted to jump up and down and scream that I was in the room as they talked over my head. Minato-sensei grinned before turning to me. "So did you give Naru any advice before she left?"

I thought back to the advice I gave her. "I told her she would do fine and to go kick butt." I didn't mention that I had also talked to her about killing, but they didn't need to know that.

Dad got up from the table and ruffled my hair before speaking again. "I've got a mission that I'm going to be late for if I keep sitting here. See you two later."

Dad left and Minato-sensei handed me a scroll. "We have an escort mission today."

I opened the scroll and read that we were escorting a local daimyo and his wife who were coming to Konoha for a vacation. I raised an eyebrow. Why would you travel with war breaking out? I sighed and continued reading; it would be a half-day's travel on foot and a day's travel back with the daimyo's carriage. The daimyo was not very influential, but he owned a medium chunk of land a couple of miles from Konoha and, according to the words scribbled in the margin of the scroll, he refused to walk to Konoha. I looked at the writings before seeing Sensei's handwriting and the words, "stuck-up snob with an ego problem and a very grabby wife" hastily written underneath the first scribbled words.

I finished reading and looked up at him. "With an ego problem and a grabby wife?"

He nodded. "You'll see what I mean when we get there. I've escorted him and his wife before and let's just say it's not a walk in the park, but I'm the only one they request. We'll get there pretty quick, but it's the ride back that drags on."

I chuckled at his words before slipping my sandals on and tightening my headband. "When do we leave Sensei?"

He looked at the clock on the wall before smiling. "Right now, let's go Kakashi."

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

Raido and I were both up by the time the sun was peeking through the leaves of the tall trees. Our stomachs growled, but we couldn't chance cooking anything, so fishing was out of the question.

"Hey Naru, look at that bush, berries."

I smiled at him and walked over to the bush. Beautiful and delicious berries beckoned to us. I grabbed one and inspected it, making sure it was not a poisonous berry before popping it in my mouth and savoring the fruit. "Good eyes Raido."

He winked. "Nah, just a hungry stomach." He filled up on the berries before sitting down and strategizing.

"Do you have any ideas Raido?"

"Actually I do have a few, but I don't think you are going to like them."

I tilted my head and asked him why.

"Well, my Sensei always told me to exploit what you have, and we don't have much except you. I underestimated you and others will too. We could use that to our advantage."

I nodded in agreement, but wished it wouldn't have to come to that. "We could always try to trap the other teams."

He shook his head. "They would be expecting it and besides, we haven't seen anyone since yesterday. We could run the chance of never seeing anybody."

I nodded and sighed. This was harder than I thought it would be. "I guess we should go and find one of the scrolls. I mean it sounded like there were a lot scattered throughout the forest, so our best bet would be to get that part of the mission accomplished and then hopefully we'll met someone on the way over."

We both stood up and headed north towards the middle of the forest.

We stopped in a slightly cleared out wooded area and had been searching the area for a scroll when I heard a twig snap behind a bush to my right. I watched Raido tense and motion for me to continue searching. I moved my head slightly to show my understanding and pushed loose dirt to the side. I could now feel the chakras of the people behind the bush; they had just gotten there, so I didn't feel bad about not sensing them.

Raido picked up a rock and placed his finger to his lips before hurling the chakra enforced rock into the bushes. A very pain filled yelp and groan emitted from the bushes and a black haired teenager came wobbling out. "What was that for? You could have killed me!"

I crossed my arms across my chest. "Well, what did you expect for us to do? Invite you over to sing 'Kumbaya' and dance in a meadow of sunflowers?"

Raido gave a dry chuckle before turning back to the other Genin. "I believe my partner is right about that. Now where is your partner?"

I watched as his eyes darted between us before replying. "I don't have a partner."

I turned to Raido and mouthed, "Lie."

I watched as my partner stepped forward and with fast movements had the other Genin down on the ground. I grabbed a kunai and looked around. He had a partner somewhere, but the question was where? I closed my eyes and remembered my training with Sakumo-sensei and his words to just feel out the chakras. My breathing slowed and I could hear and feel everything with amazing accuracy, then I felt it to the left. I quickly threw the kunai, missing but making the partner reveal herself.

She looked to be about 14 with a cocky smile. "Well, look what Raido has found, a babe in the woods. I saw you earlier little girl and couldn't believe they actually let you enter."

"Aren't you forgetting that we have your teammate and a little girl like me made you reveal your position?"

Her face twisted in anger, point for team Naru. I grinned at her before moving closer to Raido and the struggling boy. Raido had placed a kunai against his neck.

"Okay what do you want?"

Raido rolled his eyes. "Your coin, let us see your coin."

She reached into her pocket and pulled out a Wind and Rock coin. I sighed and watched as Raido let the boy up from the ground and spoke to the girl. "Thanks, but we already have that coin. Now get out of here before we change our minds."

The girl laughed. "You don't scare me Rai, neither does baby over there. In the end the best will win and the others will be left behind. Sound familiar Rai?"

The girl and boy took off into the woods and I turned to Raido who had grown very quiet since the girl started speaking. "Let's go Raido. We still have a scroll to find, not to mention the other coin."

He nodded and off we went again. I made a mental note to ask him about the girl whenever we stopped for camp.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

Sensei was right, it barely took us half a day to reach the daimyo's house, but when we got there, now that is another story altogether. We reached the house, well I guess you could call it a small palace, and I was informed that our client's name was Kato Masa and his wife's name was Kato Iku.

Of course, multiple guards informed me that we were only allowed to address them as Masa-sama or Iku-hime. Sensei and I stood at the front door and waited for our clients to come downstairs. A servant had already loaded their luggage onto the carriage.

I watched as Masa-sama, I resisted the urge to roll my eyes at his title, came down the stairs overly dressed in a billowing royal blue coat and big gaudy rings on his fingers. His black hair was slicked back and his face was scrunched up like he had just eaten something sour. Not to mention the clothes he had on underneath the coat were completely impractical. I mean honestly, why would someone wear wool as hot as it was in Konoha? The last thing I noticed was that he was older and trying to look like he was still a young man.

I didn't understand why he would try to hide his age. Dad always told me that wisdom comes with age and wisdom was worth more than all the wealth in the world. He stopped at the end of the staircase and sneered at me. "A child? The Hokage sent a child to help escort me? I paid good money for ninja, not a little boy pretending."

Minato-sensei placed a hand on my shoulder to keep me from growling at the man before calmly telling him, "Kakashi is a very capable shinobi, Masa-sama. You will be more than protected with both of us on the job."

The man just snorted and tapped his foot. "My wife should be down shortly."

As soon as the words left his mouth his wife descended the stairs. The first thing I noticed was that she was young, maybe around Sensei's age. The second thing I noticed was that her eyes were not focused on her husband, but on my sensei. She was wearing a very short and tight sundress that ended above her knees and nearly every part of her was covered in jewelry. Apparently her older husband loved to shower her with jewels. Some men would even go as far as to call her pretty but the way she carried herself, with her noise stuck high in the air, just made her unattractive to me. She had nice high cheek bones with a small, slightly pointed nose, but the curly bleach-blonde hair that reeked of perfume just made her even more unattractive. If Naru were here she would scoff at the woman's obvious dye job, her eyebrows weren't even the same color as her hair.

I watched with disinterest as she bounced down the stairs, her obscenely large breasts moving with every step. She was going to put her eye out if she wasn't careful. I cringed when she spoke in a voice dripping with sweetness and turned towards me. "Oh isn't he just adorable! I just want to pinch his masked cheeks! Is it bring your child to work day Minato dear? Because surely a child that young can't be a ninja?"

I glared at Sensei as he laughed and then coughed. "No Iku-hime, he's not my child, he's my student. Kakashi's a Chunin of the Leaf and even though he's adorable, he's very capable of protecting you."

Yep, I was killing him when we got back to Konoha, screw messing with the timeline.

I felt Sensei shove my shoulder gently to get me to introduce myself. I bowed before greeting them. "I'm Hatake Kakashi and it's a pleasure to meet you Masa-sama and Iku-hime."

I watched as Masa's eyes widened. "Hatake? As in Hatake Sakumo?"

I resisted the urge to groan at my father's name being mentioned, so instead I nodded. "Yes sir, he's my father."

The man's beady eyes shone brightly before wrapping an arm around his unwilling wife. "We might be in good hands after all sweetheart!"

Iku-hime just stepped out of his reach and leaned closer to Sensei. "Oh yes, we are going to be in good hands anyway with Minato here."

The weird couple pranced out before us and I heard Sensei groan and mumble to himself like a mantra, "Just one day, just one day, just one day…"

I walked out before him and took my place on the right side of the carriage and heard the couple arguing inside. Yep, it was going to be a long trip back to Konoha.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

We tore through the forest, dodging trees left and right. My panting increased and I could hear Raido's breaths coming out hard and fast. We skidded to a stop before he grabbed me and pulled me into a hollowed out tree. I tried to steady my heartbeat and breathing as I watched the clawed monster rush past us. I closed my eyes and let my head rest against the rough wood of the tree before looking at Raido's pale face. "That was a close one Naru."

I eventually found my voice. "What was that thing?"

He shook his head and tried to steady his breathing. "I want to say a cross between a lion and Cerberus, but who knows?"

We had been searching for the scroll and had accidentally stumbled across the horrible creature. I thought at first we could take it with our kunai, but it was just too big and once something that big is lunging at you, it's hard to think about anything besides run. We finally managed to get control of our fears and carefully exited the hollowed out tree.

I turned to him. "We have to find at least one scroll. I mean come on, we've been here going on two days and we've found nothing!"

Raido smiled gently. "Patience, we'll find it."

I stretched my cramped muscles out and was looking in the trees when something caught my eye. I noticed the distinct shine of a charka string, my eyes widened. "Raido, there's a trap up there!"

He turned toward where I was looking and saw it. "Naru, look it's a scroll!"

I nearly jumped for joy as I followed the string with my eyes. I saw the scroll resting safely in the tree, but I also saw the kunai set to fly at me if I pulled the scroll down. "Go to that tree and cut the chakra string while I get the scroll."

He nodded and soon we had six extra kunai and a scroll. "Now all we have to do it get the other coin and then we could go to the tower!"

I felt like nothing could dampen my mood. Of course, about the same time I thought that the thunder crashed above us and rain began trickling through the thick foliage overhead.

Raido looked around before his eyes landed on the giant hollowed out tree again. "It's the only thing we have and we might be able to rest for a little bit."

I nodded and we sheltered in the hollowed tree again. I heard my stomach grumble and he laughed before reaching into his kunai pouch and pulling out two ration bars. "I picked up a couple before the exam. They never said I couldn't have them, so I figured why not? It beats starving."

Of course, then he tried the bars and I giggled as he looked like he was chewing cardboard before biting mine down as well. The gentle sound of rain hitting the ground soon lulled me into a peaceful state of mind and then I remembered I wanted to ask Raido about that girl.

I looked towards him and saw his eyes staring intently out of the opening. "Raido? Who was that girl and what did she mean by what she said?"

He jumped slightly before looking at me. "Her name is Mori Etsu, and believe me, she is no delight as her namesake implies. We didn't go to the academy together, but she lives beside me and teases and taunts me just about every day. You see, I have a younger brother, Ryuu. He's about nine and he's gifted in the ninja arts. Graduated the academy at eight and made Chunin not long after that. I'm proud of him and always will be, but Etsu sees it as a disgrace that I couldn't be better than my younger brother. She constantly claims I'm being left behind and that I should quit while I'm ahead."

He trailed off and I knew it was my turn to speak. "She's an idiot Raido, so don't let her words get to you. I mean look at her, she's what 14 and still hasn't passed her Chunin Exam?"

Raido laughed gently before nodding in agreement. "I guess old habits die hard. Do you want first watch tonight?"

I nodded and soon the hollowed out tree was filled with his snores. "Good night Rai, see you in the morning."

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

Iku-hime demanded that we stop and make camp when night began to fall. Everyone, including her husband and Minato-sensei, begged her to continue, but she refused. "I cannot sleep in the carriage! I have to sleep on a vertical surface. I don't even care if we have to camp out."

My ears rang with the level of whining she was doing and eventually she got her way. Sensei turned to me and sighed. "Looks like we need to take watches tonight. Do you want the first or the second?"

"I'll take the first Sensei."

He nodded and we both began to pitch the tents and unroll the sleeping bags for the Kato couple and one for ourselves.

Minato-sensei made a fire to cook supper and I was staring intently into it after everyone had gone to bed. Though my eyes were trained on the flames, I could still sense and hear everything around me.

I heard Iku-hime sigh softly before carefully unzipping the tent and crawling out. She gave me a hard stare before walking towards me. "When is your sensei's shift?"

I didn't really like the tone she was taking with me, but I bit my tongue and gently told her, "As soon as mine is over with."

Her nostrils flared with anger and she gave a very unladylike growl before heading back into her tent. I sighed and continued watching the flames. Before long it was time to wake Sensei up. So I entered our tent, gently shook his shoulder and stood back as he stretched and yawned.

"Any troubles?"

"No, but Iku-hime was looking for you earlier." I watched his face pale before dragging himself out of the tent.

I was closing the flap to the tent when I heard Iku-hime get out of her tent and whisper to Sensei, "Mina-kun."

My eyes widened as I waited for Sensei's reaction. He grunted and I gently peered from the crack in the flap to watch. Iku-hime had tried to wrap him in a hug, but Minato-sensei had pinned her arms to her side and spoke gently to her. "Kato-hime, you have to stop this. Every time I come and escort you, you do this. I'm sorry, but I'm not interested in you."

I watched the woman's face twist in anger and her hands shake with fury. "I could give you anything Minato, if you would just give me what I want."

I watched her hands move up Sensei's arm and he flinched away from her touch. "Go back to bed Kato-sama. Let your husband fill your desires."

She huffed off, flipping her hair back before retreating into her tent.

I gently laid my head on the pillow, hoping that Sensei wouldn't be molested by Iku-hime by morning.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Raido stretched as he tumbled out of the hollowed log that served as their shelter last night. He gave Naru a hand and helped her out as well. He didn't know why he told Naru about the whole Etsu thing, but he just felt like he could tell her anything.

He smiled and thought that maybe he had found a good friend in the little blonde haired girl. It was day three of their five days and all they had to do was find the other coin. "Let's go northwest today Rai."

Raido stopped and stared at her. "You called me Rai."

She blushed. "Is that okay?"

He nodded and took off toward the northwest part of the forest. He was beginning to think they would run out of time when they heard a very loud yell sound throughout the area. Naru pulled him down and they both tried to mask their chakra as they peered into the clearing. Two 14 year-old-boys stood in the middle and were yelling at each other.

"Where did you put the coin Toyo?"

The boy, Toyo, was rummaging through his pockets. "I'm telling you I don't have it Taro!"

The other boy, Taro, was shaking his head and began dipping his hand in his own pockets. They watched as his face turned ten shades of red before pulling out a coin and to their joy it was a completed Fire/Water coin.

Raido gripped Naru's arm and smiled, but they would need a good plan to pull this off. Naru's eyes sparkled as she thought of one. "Rai, I need you to distract them for a little bit. I'm going to set a couple of traps. You can handle them."

Naru left Raido's line of vision and he boldly jumped into the clearing with his kunai drawn. The boys in front of him took on a defensive position, trying to hide their coin from his prying eyes. The boy to his right, Toyo, had dark brown hair and green eyes, but the clumsy way he was holding his now drawn weapon showed his weakness. The boy to his left, Taro, had black hair and brown eyes and held his weapon firmly and stood strong and tall as he stared into Raido's eyes. "What do you want?"

Raido chuckled. "You know what I want, and I'll take it by force if I have to. So why don't you save yourself some pain and give me the coin?"

Taro laughed before running forward to slash Raido with his kunai, but Raido dodged and kicked the boy in the back. Toyo then took the initiative to jump on Raido, in the hopes of getting him on the ground. However, Raido was used to having his brother jump on him, so he grabbed the other Genin's arm and flipped him onto the ground.

He was blindsided with a hard fist to his nose, sending him to the ground. After hearing the sickening crack he knew it was broken. The blood ran down his face as he staggered to his feet before running through hand signs as he pulled the chakra into his chest and took a deep breath. "Katon: Gokakyu no Jutsu!"

The giant fireball roared straight at the smirking Genin who managed to dodge just in time, but still got singed by the flames. The two boys stood before Raido again and he found himself wondering where his partner had gone.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I quietly set my trap. It was nothing deadly, but it would hold the captive for a while. The way I had set it up was different. I didn't have the netting or rope I needed to set up most traps, but with a few clones and a bunch of leaves, anything was possible, even if my hands hurt.

I looked at the hole in the ground and covered it with branches before covering that with a Genjutsu, just to be on the safe side. I sighed and mentally prepared myself for what I had to do. Raido suggested earlier exploiting everything we had and, unfortunately, my age was something we could exploit. I bit my lip hard enough to draw blood and was satisfied with the watering of my eyes that would give me the lost little girl look.

I snuck closer to the clearing and quickly jumped out. "LEAVE HIM ALONE!" Raido looked at me and I slyly winked at him before turning my attention back to the two boys, who had stopped everything to stare at me. "I-I-I have the c-coin and I'll g-give it to you if y-you leave him alone!"

I fake wailed to the boys and mentally grinned as one dropped his defensive stance and began walking closer to me. "Come on sweetie, give the coin to Uncle Taro and you can go home and Momma can take care of you."

I wanted to gag at the tone of his voice, but instead I began backing up towards my trap. I glanced quickly at Raido and saw he was advancing on Toyo. He was an arm's length away from Toyo when I looked into Taro's eyes and smirked. "Come get it if you want it so bad!"

I turned and took off out of the clearing with him hot in my trail; I took to the right of the trap and soon heard Taro's yell of surprise and grunt of pain. I stopped running and turned back to stare into the hole in the ground and saw him lying on his back looking up at me.

His face showed a mixture of shock and embarrassment.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Raido considered himself lucky to have a teammate that could think on her feet like that. He knew it hurt her pride to exploit her age and not use her ninja abilities. He was an arm's length away from Toyo when Naru led Taro away and into her trap.

Raido had no idea what trap she had planned, but hopefully it would keep the other boy still for a little while. Toyo had been stunned still as he watched the girl completely change from an innocent little girl to a she-devil and led his teammate away. Raido took advantage of the situation and crashed his fist into the boy's stomach.

When the boy doubled over, Raido slammed his elbow into Toyo's back and watched as he plummeted to the ground, gasping for breath. Raido kicked the boy onto his back and placed his foot on his stomach. "Where is the coin?"

Toyo gasped for breath before rasping out, "In my back pocket."

Raido nodded and flipped the boy over and removed the coin from his pocket before grabbing Toyo's neck and pressing just the right spot to make the boy pass out. "Sleep tight, and thanks for the coin."

Naru was turning to go back to the clearing and help Raido when she froze and watched as Taro used his chakra to walk up the side of the hole. She groaned, how could she forget about chakra? He glared at her when he made it over and rushed her.

She ducked out of the way and formed the hand signs for Kage no Bunshin and produced five clones. They all attacked together, getting into the rhythm of kicking and punching, utterly overpowering the Genin. He finally kicked out and destroyed three of her clones.

Naru gathered her chakra to her feet and pushed herself forward, landing a nice left hook to his face. He flew into the tree, but before he hit a log replaced him. Naru turned around quickly to block a kick to the head as he came from behind. Her heart was pounding and the adrenaline was rushing through her veins as she twisted her body and kicked with both feet, connecting with solid body.

She landed on her feet and stared at Taro as he rubbed his chin, where her fist had connected earlier. "Well, little girl's got a mean left hook."

Naru snarled before answering. "The name's Naru, not little girl!" He rushed at her and she jumped over him and landing behind him. She quickly pulled out her kunai and placed it at his neck. "I win."

Taro stilled as the steel blade pressed against his jugular, his breathing was fast and irregular. "Toyo has the coin."

Naru nodded before twisting his arm tightly and quickly dropping the kunai to apply pressure to the nerve on the back of his neck.

Taro, just like his teammate Toyo, soon joined the peace of unconsciousness.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

We finally got back on the road about mid-morning with a very icy Iku-hime and a grumpy Masa-sama.

I sighed and walked beside the carriage, listening to the bickering inside the carriage for the fourth time. Apparently having money did not mean you were happy. I couldn't wait to get back to Konoha and hopefully Naru was doing well on her exam.

Minato-sensei called me over as we continued walking. "I know you saw that last night Kakashi."

I blushed underneath my mask. "I didn't mean to spy Sensei, but she was acting so strange."

He nodded before smiling. "Don't worry about her, in a couple of hours we'll be free of both of them."

I nodded before taking my position beside the carriage again and before long I could see the gates of my village.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I walked into the clearing where Raido was at to see Toyo passed out on the ground and Raido proudly holding a Fire/Water coin in his hand with blood streaming from his nose. I jumped for joy and ran across the clearing. "Did you get hurt?"

He shook his head before wincing and trying to stop the pouring blood. "I think my nose is broken."

I gently touched his nose and he flinched back. "It looks broken to me too. I could try to fix it, but I don't want to injure you even more."

Raido nodded. "Since we have everything we can go to the tower and get medical attention there."

"Sounds like a plan to me. Should we wait 'til morning or leave now?"

We both looked at each other and thought about hot showers and warm beds and at the same time came to the same conclusion. "Now!"

Now that we had our two completed coins and a scroll we were ready to go. We spent the night traveling to the tower, going slowly as to not alert anyone to our presence. We entered the open room of the empty tower and looked around only to find no one.

Raido took the scroll and inserted one coin and I inserted the other. We looked at each other and nodded before opening the scroll and letting it fall to the ground as it began smoking and a blond haired man appeared in the room. "Rafu-sensei!"

The man, Rafu, who I assumed was Raido's sensei, nodded towards him before resting his eyes on me. I saw them widen slightly before he coughed and congratulated us for completing the first part of the exam.

"To become a Chunin is to become a leader and to grow strong in areas you are weak and even stronger in areas where you are strong. You will one day lead a team and they will be your responsibility to lead them to complete the mission and bring them back safely. If you do not posses these qualities then you do not need to become a Chunin, especially with a war going on. I also have to tell you about the next part of the exam which is a T&I evaluation."

He grew silent as he let us think over his words. I finally broke the silence. "Umm, Rafu-sensei?"

He nodded towards me. "Yes?"

"What would've happened to us if we would've opened the scroll before we got into the tower?"

I watched as the man's eyes twinkled with secret delight. "Let's just say it wasn't a pleasant experience."

He then led us to the competitor's rooms where we could get cleaned up and Raido's broken nose could get fixed.

I lay on the bed, clean and refreshed, thinking about his words, wondering exactly what he meant by that.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Across the forest another team had found a scroll and the girl was nagging the boy to open the scroll before they reached the tower.

"What's the worst that could happen?"

The boy furiously shook his head. "I don't know, we could DIE!"

She waved it off. "We won't die silly. Just one peek isn't going to hurt anyone."

The boy finally agreed and sat beside her as she pushed a small fingernail underneath the opening. She took a deep breath and ripped the scroll open. They waited for a few minutes and nothing happened. "See? Nothing happened and you were worried for nothing."

All of a sudden the scroll began smoking and she dropped it to the ground as the smoke became thicker and thicker. They both stepped back and trembled as a figure appeared from the smoke. The girl's eyes widened as she recognized the figure and in a terrified whisper spoke. "Mom? What are you doing here?"

The girl's mother snarled before grabbing her ear and yelling. "I raised you better than this! The only reason I would have been called was if you disobeyed orders and opened the scroll early! You are in so much trouble young lady and you too for going along with it!"

The girl didn't even try to fight her mother as she and her teammate were dragged out of the forest. In the Hokage Tower, the Third Hokage smiled to himself as he looked into his crystal ball. There was one thing every ninja feared, no matter how powerful they were, and that was their own mother.

He chuckled to himself. Absolutely the best plan he had ever come up with, second only to gambling with Tsunade.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

We dropped the Kato couple at their hotel room in Konoha before heading to the Hokage Tower to drop off our mission report.

I thought we were finally home free when Iku-hime ran out to us and pinched Minato-sensei's behind before telling him that she would see him next time. I just stared after her in disbelief before looking at the priceless expression on Minato-sensei's face.

He shook his head in disbelief. "I am never escorting that family again, never in a million years."

I chuckled at his misfortune before following behind him and wondering how Naru was.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

Raido and I rested for the day and before long the fifth and final day had arrived. Only four teams survived the first part of the exam and were going on to the T&I evaluation.

I also noted that today was Kakashi's seventh birthday.

I would have to get him something after the exams were over.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo had gotten back in the early hours of the morning on September 15 and walked into his house.

He shed his dirty clothing and hopped in the shower before dressing and walking to Kakashi's room. He opened the door and walked in, shaking his son awake. When the boy was coherent enough to understand him, he smiled gently before teasing him. "Happy Birthday Ka-chan."

Kakashi blinked at the nickname his father said his mother had used for him before grinning and looking at the clock. "Did you just get home?"

Sakumo nodded before pushing him back to lie down. "I just wanted to come and tell you happy birthday in case I have a mission today."

Kakashi nodded before closing his eyes and drifting back to sleep. Sakumo kissed the top of the soft silver head before walking out of the room and into the kitchen. Kakashi was going to have the best birthday any seven-year-old could ever ask for. "Now where did I put the cake pan?"


	10. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo looked all through the cabinets before finally finding the cake pan in the far back of the cabinet above the stove. He grinned as he got it and washed it out. It had been years since the last time he had baked a cake, but today he was going to have to break that streak.

He placed the now clean pan on the counter before rummaging through the kitchen drawers to find the wooden spoon and then he went and opened the pantry door to get out the cake mix. Sakumo grabbed the cake mix, but stopped as his wife's apron caught his eye. It hadn't been worn in years, not since Kakashi's first birthday.

 _Flashback…._

 _Nozomi stood in the kitchen humming as she poured the cake batter into the pan. She was baking a cake for her son's first birthday and wanted everything to be perfect for the one-year-old. Her black hair cascaded down her back and ended right above the pink strings that held the bright pink apron close to her body._

 _Sakumo walked into the kitchen and she turned around, flashing him a beautiful smile before laughing at the look on his face. "What? You don't like my baking apron?"_

 _He grinned before walking to her, wrapping his arms around her waist and kissing the back of her head. "Why neon pink?"_

 _She giggled and wiggled out of his arms to put the pan into the heated stove. "I liked neon pink better than neon orange, and besides," Sakumo watched as her eyes twinkled with hidden mirth, "one day I'm getting this thing on you and pink went better with your hair color than orange did."_

 _Sakumo rolled his eyes before stealing a kiss. "I'm not wearing that apron."_

 _She pulled away from him and traced the side of his jaw with her finger. "One day you will, just wait and see."_

 _End Flashback…._

He grinned before picking the still bright pink apron up and putting it on, making sure to tie it tightly around his waist. He picked at the fading white ruffles on the edges of the apron before placing the cake mix beside the cake pan and the spoon. Sakumo then went down his mental checklist and got out the other ingredients he would need; the essentials like eggs, milk, water, oil and, of course, the icing.

He looked at the clock and calculated if he had enough time to finish the cake and hide it from Kakashi. Once he had determined he did, he smiled and got to work. If he worked as quietly as he could, then he would have it finished and cooling before Kakashi even thought about getting up.

Sakumo began mixing the ingredients and thinking about the events he had planned for the day. He knew Kakashi would be very excited when he found out about his present and that Sakumo managed to get the entire day off from missions. Sakumo was standing in the middle of his kitchen stirring the mixture with the wooden spoon when Minato burst through the door with a brightly wrapped present and his ever-present smile.

"Good Morning Saku-You're wearing a pink apron."

Sakumo continued stirring and never looked up at him. "I'm so glad you finally learned your colors because Konoha was beginning to look bad."

Minato snorted at the comment before placing the present on the table and sitting in the chair. "Making Kakashi a cake?"

Sakumo nodded. "Yep, a vanilla cake with vanilla icing."

Minato raised an eyebrow before laughing. "Oh yeah, I forgot your seven-year-old hates sweets. It's like he's thirty trapped in a seven-year-olds body."

Sakumo feigned mock disappointment. "Honestly I don't know where he gets that from. I've tried to guide him on the right path toward sugary goodness, but the boy's stubborn."

Minato laughed before standing up and trying to taste the batter. Sakumo smacked him with the spoon. "I will throw you out of my kitchen. Don't tempt me." His threat went unanswered as Minato sat back down and started laughing again. "What's so funny now?"

"I just realized that you still have that apron on and I can't take you seriously with that thing on. It's too funny and I'll have you know that you don't look very intimidating right now."

Sakumo rolled his eyes and poured the cake batter into the cake pan and popped it into the oven. He ran his hand through his bangs and sighed. "I can't believe Kakashi's seven-years-old today. It seems like just yesterday we were bringing him home from the hospital."

Minato nodded. "A lot of things happen in seven years, but at least you have those memories, with Naru all I have is now."

Sakumo sat down across from Minato. "Don't let that bother you. Make memories with her now and enjoy the time you have together."

"What was Kakashi like as a child? All I've ever known is ninja Kakashi and he rarely lets child Kakashi come out and play."

Sakumo leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes. "I guess I can skip the baby years. All babies are the same, but Kakashi started to shine after he started walking and not in ninja skills. He was such a sweet, affectionate child, and you wouldn't know it looking at him now, but he was a mama's boy. I knew he would break hearts one day with his smile and looks. Of course, I was a little biased; he is my son."

They both chuckled and Sakumo continued. "In the beginning, I didn't want Kakashi to become a ninja; he was too gentle and too caring. I knew the life of a ninja would kill his innocent nature, but after Nozomi died it was my only option because being a ninja was all I knew. I couldn't teach him to be a civilian like Nozomi could have. Plus, I wasn't going to be able to be there everyday for him and my thought was that if I enrolled him in the academy he would find his own calling and make his own choice. I never expected him to be as good as he was. I knew he caught on quickly whenever I taught him things, but I just thought that was him trying to impress me. Then I was called to the academy after he was in school for about six months and they begged me Minato, they begged me to allow him to take the Genin Exam and I did. I never expected Kakashi to pass. In fact, I was hoping he wouldn't, but in the end he did and I had a five-year-old Genin on my hands. You know the rest; you've spent as much time with him as I have since he became a ninja. I think that's where I started to lose the little boy I raised. He stopped calling me daddy and stopped asking to sleep in the bed with me. He practically grew up over those six months and I could do nothing but be proud of him."

Sakumo got quiet and checked the cake before sitting back down and speaking again. "Then I let my six-year-old take the Chunin Exam and, of course, my genius son passed. Now he's going on B-ranked missions when he can't even reach the top of the counter without using a stool. Sometimes I feel guilty about putting Kakashi into the academy at that young of an age and sometimes I feel terrible that I signed the papers to allow him to take the Chunin Exam. I feel like I ruined the innocence that I wanted him to keep so badly, but at the same time I'm so proud of him that it hurts."

Minato shook his head in disagreement before speaking. "You are too hard on yourself Sakumo. Kakashi's going to be fine and, besides, he doesn't go on very hard missions. I mean mostly I'm with him or the mission is inside the village."

Sakumo's face grew grim as he got out of the chair and picked up a mission report that he had been working on before he left for his mission, and gave it to Minato. "Tell that to those Genin and their parents."

Minato opened the scroll and his eyes strayed to the words on the page, but didn't read them. He could only look at the pictures paper clipped to the report. "Minato, their mission was E-ranked, a simple gathering herbs mission on the outskirts of Konoha. Their Sensei didn't think there would be any danger with them going by themselves because it was such a safe mission, but look where that landed those Genin. They are dead and their mission wasn't very hard and it was close to the village. So, tell me Minato, how long before that's one of our kids?"

Minato didn't answer, but he heard. His normally steady hands trembled as he took the pictures off of the report and looked at the girl in the picture. She was about twelve or so, but with her light blonde hair and dark blue eyes, she reminded Minato so much of Naru that it hurt.

He put the picture down and looked at the other one, the one where the girl's body is nearly unrecognizable except for the blond hair. Shock entered Minato's system as he thought about how that girl could have been Naru. Should he have been so nonchalant about letting his only daughter enter into an exam where she could be killed? Minato closed his eyes and felt the despair that Sakumo was feeling. Had they ruined their children?

Minato tried to get his breathing under control as he looked up at his friend, who was practically drowning in his own thoughts. Why was this the first time he had thought about Naru getting killed? The little voice in the back of his head spitefully told him because he believed it wouldn't happen to him. He had been so worried about how Kushina would react he hadn't given himself time to think about Naru's ninja career. He hadn't spared the time to think like a father. He was still thinking like a teenager in love.

Sakumo sighed before looking at Minato. "I feel so guilty sometimes, but then I watch him train or see him interacting with Naru and I feel at peace because he's so happy. And, as strange as it sounds, carefree when he's with her or training."

Minato took a deep breath before speaking. "Maybe we can still let them be children and let them grow, because the Third won't send them to the front lines. He did allow them to become ninja, but he refuses to send them to their deaths."

Sakumo gave his friend a smile, feeling lighter after telling someone his fears. "You are right. Thanks Minato, for listening."

Minato waved it off. "No, thank you. I realized some things today and I'm glad I'm not as blind as I was."

Both men turned as they heard a knock on the door and Sakumo got up to answer. Minato watched his friend and wanted to remind him he was still wearing the pink apron, but figured it would be a great way to greet whoever was at the door.

Sakumo opened the door to reveal an ANBU operative, who completely lost his composure when he saw Sakumo. "Hatake-senpai?"

Sakumo raised a silver eyebrow at the man before crossing his arms across his chest. "What? Never seen a man wear a pink apron before?"

The ANBU shook his head before fumbling to find the scroll he had for the White Fang. Sakumo tapped his foot, but mentally he grinned. He must have looked funny to make the ANBU lose control like that. "Hatake-senpai, the Hokage wanted me to give you this and to inform you that Uzu Naru made it through the first part of the exam, sir."

Sakumo nodded and dismissed the ANBU before walking back into the kitchen, where Minato was trying to sneak some icing. Sakumo took the scroll and smacked his friend, who in turn cradled his head where the scroll had struck. "Mission?"

Sakumo nodded. "Yeah, but it's not for a couple of weeks. Sounds pretty important. Oh, and Naru passed the first part of the exam."

Minato smiled slightly before speaking. "I'm proud, but worried."

"Being worried is the sign of a good father."

Minato teasingly grinned Sakumo's direction. "So is wearing pink aprons apparently."

Sakumo just smiled and got the cake out of the oven. It smelled heavenly. "Shut up and help me decorate the cake before 'kashi wakes up."

Minato snorted in laughter; he couldn't help but tease Sakumo. "Yes Ma'am!"

Sakumo resisted the urge to hit Minato before looking at the wrapped present. "What did you get him?"

Minato's grin widened. "Those weights he has been wanting. What about you? What are you getting him?"

Sakumo placed the cake on the table to cool before looking at Minato. "Something he's wanted since he was little and I think he's responsible enough to handle it now. I'm getting him a puppy."

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I finally opened my eyes later that morning and vaguely remembered Dad coming into my room and wishing me a happy birthday. I sighed. That meant he was gone on a mission and wasn't going to be able to spend my birthday with me. I dragged myself out of bed and down the stairs, but instead of the quiet I expected, I was greeted with the sounds of food being cooked.

I went into the kitchen only to find dad flipping pancakes. "Morning 'kashi!"

"I thought you had a mission?"

He shook his head. "Nope, I wanted to surprise you. So did I succeed?" I laughed before grabbing a plate and letting him put the blueberry pancake on the plate. We ate and he commented on last night's mission. "Nothing big, just long and tiring. So kiddo, what do you want to do today?"

I looked away sheepishly. I hadn't thought of anything because I didn't really believe he would be home today. "I haven't really thought about it."

Dad just grinned at me as he took away our dirty dishes. "Good, because I've got a whole day planned out for us. Now go get dressed and meet me outside while I get my secret surprise. Oh and Minato came by this morning and dropped your present off, but you can get it later. We don't have much time."

I ran upstairs and hastily got dressed before bouncing back down the stairs and skidding to a stop in front of him. I noticed he had a blanket and a picnic basket with him. "Are we having a picnic?"

He grinned and ruffled my hair before leading my out the door and away from the house. "That's for me to know and you to find out."

I followed behind him, expecting him to turn towards the park, but instead he kept going straight, right into the woods beside the house. I looked at him quizzically, but if he saw my expression he chose to ignore it and pushed through the underbrush to reveal a well worn path in the ground.

"Dad? What is it?"

I watched as Dad held the tree limbs back for me and let them go as I stepped onto the path. "It's hard to explain exactly what it is; you'll just have to see for yourself when we get there."

I followed behind him, wondering what he had planned and why I never noticed the hidden path beside the house. "How far is it?"

Dad turned around to look at me. "Oh, well about a good hour's walk from here."

I blinked. "An hour?"

He nodded. "Yeah or longer, but hey you're young, you'll survive."

I really hoped he was joking, there was no way it took an hour to walk wherever we were going; these woods were not that big.

An hour and a half later, I knew exactly why it was taking so long. Whoever made the path had obviously made it as a joke. The path was completely confusing, making sharp turns and circling around trees and I swear we passed the same rock three times.

I was glaring holes into the back of Dad's head, but all he did was laugh it off and hum as we continued walking. I finally stopped and stomped my foot. "Okay Dad, where are we going? Because this is getting annoying."

Dad just grinned before stepping to the side of the path where the underbrush was extremely heavy before pushing it back to reveal another path. I felt my eye twitch as he motioned for me to continue. I sighed and got onto the new path, noticing that the path was darker than the first one and the way the limbs of the trees had grown made it look like a tunnel. Dad quickly got in front of me and stopped when we came to an opening. He looked back at me and motioned me forward.

I looked around his body and stood in shock as I saw the breath taking view before me. Somehow in our journey through the woods we had ended up beside a small bubbling creek that emptied into a much larger lake. I turned back to him. "What is this place?"

Dad just ignored me and walked over to the lake and spread the blanket out before setting the basket down. "Come sit beside me Ka-chan."

I tensed at the nickname; he only called me that when he was thinking about my mother.

"I don't want to make today a sad day. I want you to be happy today, but I feel that it is time you heard the story of this secret place and why it's so special."

I went and sat down beside him. "So not everyone knows about this?"

Dad shook his head. "Only a couple of people have ever been here, but it's known about. The only problem is that if you don't know about the second path you would never make it here and would spend the rest of your day wandering in circles."

"Why the need for secrecy?"

Dad smiled gently before picking up a blade of grass and twirling it between his fingers. "This place was once Hatake lands."

My eyes widened in shock as he continued. "My grandfather was one of the first Konoha ninjas. He was strong and talented, but he had one weakness that he couldn't get rid of."

"What was it?"

"My grandmother."

I raised an eyebrow at him. What could he mean by that?

"He loved her more than anything else in the entire world and wanted to prove that to her. So he used a couple of water jutsu and a couple of earth jutsu to make this place for her. He wanted to give her a place where they could escape the hard ninja life and just be together. They loved each other very much and wanted to share their love with the generations after them. So they passed down the knowledge of this place to my father and he passed it down to me."

I watched as he closed his eyes before speaking. "It became tradition to pass the location of the Hatake Paradise to the sons of the family so they could bring their loved ones here. And I was going to wait 'til you were older but I figured today was a fine day to show you."

Dad pointed to a lone tree that sat in the middle of the green grass beside the small creek. "You see that tree there?" I nodded. "That tree is the exact place I was sitting when I met your mother for the first time."

I smiled at him and he continued. "I swear Nozomi was the most troublesome and curious civilian I had ever met, not to mention she was hardheaded. She had heard a rumor about this place and was bound and determined to find it. And she did. I remember letting her swim in the lake for a little bit before asking her why she was here. She ignored me long enough to get out of the lake and giggle at me before asking if I had dyed my hair that color."

Dad smiled gently at me. "Another thing your mother had problems with, her mouth, and that trait seems to be one that you inherited from her. Of course, after I told her that her mouth was going to get her in trouble one day, she gracefully told me to shove it and walked out of the clearing. I was hooked from that exact moment and I hate to admit it, but she had me wrapped around her finger and knew it. Losing her was one of the hardest things I ever had to go through, but I made it through and do you know why?"

I shook my head and he smiled before picking me up and sitting me in his lap. "Because I had you. I've put off telling you about her for a long time now and with us heading into war I want to make sure I leave no stone unturned. I don't want something to happen and you have to find out stuff second hand about your mother and me. So I've decided that from here on out I'll tell you a little bit about her every day. Do you like that idea?"

I nodded furiously. My father had never spoken about my mother, in both timelines. It was one of his taboo things that you didn't mention and I vaguely remembered his grief over losing my mother being another factor in his eventual suicide. Maybe this time around, if he didn't bottle all those emotions up about her then he wouldn't let the guilt kill him. "I would like that."

We were both quiet for a moment, but not the awkward quiet. It was a comforting silence. Dad looked down at me and I somehow missed the mischievous look in his eyes. "Are you ready for your surprise?"

"Of course!" He smiled before standing up with me still in his arms. "Dad?"

He just grinned before walking to the edge of the lake. I soon found myself staring into the clear blue water. He wasn't going to drop me in was he? "Dad wait!"

He ignored me and tossed me in. I hit the bottom of the lake before I shot back to the surface and heard his laughter above me.

I grinned behind my soaked mask; he was going down. I pulled myself onto the shore and while he was laughing I pushed him into the cold water. Only to my disappointment I saw he had gathered chakra into his feet and was currently standing on top of the lake, dry. I gathered chakra into my own feet and began walking towards him; I got close enough to touch him before tackling him with my body.

He sucked in a breath as we both tumbled into the water. We both surfaced and I glared at him. "What was that for? The water's freezing, plus it's in the middle of September!"

He just splashed me and I couldn't help but laugh at his playfulness. "Well, I figured what little boy wouldn't love to go swimming for his seventh birthday."

"Hey! I'm not little. I'm a Chunin."

Dad held his hands up in surrender before floating on his back. "Sorry, I forgot. Don't hurt me mister big strong Chunin!"

I pushed his floating feet away from me. "I don't appreciate being mocked Dad."

He just laughed again. "'Til you reach Jounin level or puberty, I have every right to mock you as my duty as your father."

I splashed water at him and soon we were both immersed in an all out splash war. We didn't get out of the water 'til about noon and when we did the September air was chilly against our wet clothes. Dad went to the basket and pulled out two sets of clothes. "See? I thought ahead."

I rolled my eyes and he pointed over to the coverage of the trees where we could change our wet clothes. Once we were both dry and sitting on the blanket again, Dad opened the basket and handed out the food. I smiled as I looked at the miso soup with eggplant in the thermos that had kept it warm. We ate; only stopping to talk and laugh. This birthday was becoming my favorite birthday ever and I had a feeling Dad wasn't through surprising me yet. After we finished eating Dad began cleaning up. "Do we have to go now?"

Dad waved my question off. "Don't whine. We're going to get your present or do you want to wait?"

I shook my head furiously. "Now please!"

He laughed and we walked out of the forest and arrived back at the house a whole lot sooner than I expected. Dad just laughed at my expression. "We had to take the long way or it wouldn't have been fun."

"Whatever you say Dad, whatever you say."

He quickly dropped off the basket and blanket and we began walking towards the marketplace. I followed behind, wondering what my present was going to be. I remembered that the first time he had been on a mission and hadn't been able to get me anything. So, needless to say, I was excited and determined to love whatever he gave me. At one point Dad stopped in front of me and turned around and took off my headband.

I raised my eyebrow in question as he tied it over my eyes and led me by the hand down the road before stopping again. I sniffed the air and something about where we were smelled familiar, but I couldn't exactly place my finger on what the smell was. It was the smell of an animal, but I couldn't figure out why my present would smell like an animal, like dog. He couldn't possibly be giving me a puppy.

When I was younger I had practically begged my dad to let me have a puppy. He would always tell me that we had more than enough dogs with his nin-dogs, but I wanted a puppy that wouldn't be used for training. I guess the lonely child in me just wanted someone to play with, but I eventually let go of that wish because Dad wouldn't give in to my pleas.

Dad sat me down on a bench and placed my arms in a cradle formation. For a minute I was worried about what he was going to do. Then he placed a soft, furry, breathing lump in my arms and I raised my covered eyes to look in the direction I thought he would be in.

He chuckled before removing my headband and I got to look at the lump in my arms. My eyes widened as I looked at the salt and pepper colored puppy with dark eyes. I looked back up to him to see that he was chuckling as he knelt down and removed the puppy from my arms to scratch it behind the ears.

Another man walked into the room, one of my dad's teammates, and smiled at me. "You take good care of her Kakashi, that's one of my Kama's first litter of puppies."

Dad looked at him and thanked him. "No problem Captain. You've saved my butt more times than I can count, so just consider this as returning the favor."

The man walked out of the room and Dad handed the puppy back to me. "Is she really mine?"

He nodded his head. "You'll have to take care of her. That means feeding, walking, house training, bathing and playing with her."

I was very excited and hugged the small puppy to my chest before thanking dad. "It's the best birthday present ever. I promise to take real good care of her."

He ruffled my hair before standing back up and helping me get off the bench without dropping the puppy. "So 'kashi, what are you going to name her?"

I looked at the puppy in my arms and didn't want to name her something obvious. So I decided to name her based on her time of birth. "I'll name her Aki because she was born in autumn just like I was."

Dad smiled before scratching Aki behind the ears. "Welcome to the family Aki." Aki in turn gave a small bark before snuggling back in my arms and falling back to sleep.

We made it back home and I put Aki down in the kitchen so she could explore the house. I watched her as she curiously sniffed at her surroundings before growling at the running refrigerator and running back to me as Dad closed the cabinet door.

I looked at the cake in his hands and smiled; "Happy Birthday Kakashi" was written across the top of the white cake and surrounded by seven candles. I grinned and took the cake from Dad and placed it on the table while he got out the matches to light the candles. Once they were lit I went to blow them out, but before I could Dad stopped me. "You've got to make a wish first Kakashi."

I closed my eyes and wished, knowing it was silly, but I needed any bit of luck I could get if I was going to change the future.

Please let me save him. I can't lose him this time around, especially not after all of the good memories we've made these last few weeks.

I took a deep breath and blew the candles out as Dad sang 'Happy Birthday' to me way off tune. I laughed at him and he ruffled my hair and went to get plates for the cake.

"Hey, where is my present from Sensei?"

Dad pointed to the counter beside the refrigerator with a cake covered knife as he plated the pieces of cake for us. I picked up Sensei's present and smiled, it was the weights I had wanted for my taijutsu training.

Aki ran up to my leg and tugged on my pants with her teeth. So I patted her head and went back to the table to eat my birthday cake, all the time wondering if this birthday could get any better. It wasn't until later when Dad took me out on the roof to watch the stars did I realize that not only did it get better, but it was everything I had ever wanted or dreamed about. I just hoped my birthday wish came true.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I woke up the sixth day of the Chunin Exams to a cup of ice-cold water being poured on my head. I jumped out of bed and glared at whoever dared to do that. I was met with the smiling face of my Sensei. "Sakumo-sensei?"

He grinned. "I'm glad to see you made it through Naru. I've been hearing rumors about you and all say you did remarkable. I can't wait to see how well you'll do in this part of the exam."

I sat back on the bed and pulled my knees close to my chest. "I'm kind of nervous Sensei. What if I don't do so well on the interrogation part?"

Sakumo-sensei sat beside me on the bed and pushed my hair behind my ear in a comforting gesture. "Naru, no matter what happens or what they do to you, go to your happy place. I know it sounds weird to hear someone tell you that, but it works. Don't focus on anything but your happy place. It can be anything from a memory to an actual place. The key thing is that you don't give away any information and you'll be fine. Repeat that over and over let it become your mantra, just don't give away your mission."

I looked into his eyes, still not comforted. "Sensei, I don't think I can."

"Naru, where is the girl that snuck into my bathroom and switched my shampoo for hair dye? Where is the girl that can give Kakashi a run for his money in training? Where is the girl I trained that is never afraid to try something new? Where is the girl that never doubts her abilities? Because last time I checked, her name was Uzu Naru and she doesn't give up."

I smiled at him before latching my arms around his neck. "Thanks Sensei.'

"No problem Naru. Now go out there and show them what you are made of."

Sensei walked out of the room while I got dressed, then we went to the tower arena together. As we walked we bumped into Raido and his sensei Rafu. I couldn't help but notice the tension between Sakumo-sensei and Rafu-sensei as Raido and I talked to each other.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo looked at Rafu hard before speaking. "Rafu."

The man nodded back. "Sakumo."

They both listened to their Genin joke around with each other. Raido was currently telling Naru that his friend Genma had made it past the first round and wanted to meet her. Naru turned towards Sakumo. "Sensei, can I go with Raido?"

Sakumo nodded. "Just make sure you are back before the Hokage starts the explanations."

She nodded and walked with Raido to the Genin holdings. "Wow Sakumo, how old is she, four?"

Sakumo smirked. "No, she's six and from what I heard she saved your Genin from becoming plant food."

Rafu snarled at Sakumo. "I'm leaving before I say something I shouldn't!"

"That's the wisest thing you have ever said Rafu, because I can't guarantee your safety if you stick around."

The two Jounin walked in opposite directions of each other, both fuming and lost in their thoughts of the past.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I followed behind Raido as we went into the Genin holdings and found a boy with light brown hair and brown eyes watching the other competitors with a calculating eye. Raido stood in front of him and greeted him with a small shove to the shoulder.

"Rai, don't! I dislocated it earlier and they fixed it, but it's still sore."

I walked to stand to the other side of him. "Hi, I'm Uzu Naru."

He grinned at me. "I'm Shiranui Genma. Rai here has told me a lot about you Naru. Did you really save him from getting eaten by a plant?"

I blushed. Was that going to be my only greatest accomplishment during theses exams? "Yeah I did, but he helped a lot later."

Genma patted the two seats beside him. "Don't doubt he did, Rai here's talented when he wants to be."

Raido smacked his friend on the arm again. "So Gen, how was your teammate?"

"A whiney, stuck-up female that complained about sleeping in the rain and practically kicked my tail after I told her she wasn't going to be a good Kunoichi if she didn't take the stick out of her backside." I laughed at his pained expression, and he winked at me. "But don't worry, I got her back. Being woken up with cold water is not the best way to start your morning."

I shivered. What was it with male Konoha ninjas and their obsession with cold water? "My Sensei has pulled that trick a couple of times, it's not fun at all."

Both of them laughed at my predicament, before Genma asked, "Who is your sensei Naru?"

"Hatake Sakumo."

Raido and Genma both froze and looked at each other. "The White Fang of Konoha is your sensei? You are so lucky! I would kill to have that ninja teach me. I mean, don't get me wrong, my sensei rocks, but you can't touch legends like him."

I waved their assumptions off. "Sensei's a hard teacher, but he's kind and amazing to train with."

They both asked more questions, but I didn't have time to answer them because the Hokage was calling all competitors to the floor.

"Congratulations on making it to the second and final round of the Chunin Exams. This next part is very important seeing that we are in times of war. We need to see if our Chunin can be trusted enough to not spill secrets to the enemy even in times of torture and interrogation. You will be called into the interrogation room one at a time and given a password that is vital to the survival of the Leaf Village. You must protect this password with your life. Now depending on how you fare in your T&I session and the reports we have from the Forest of Death, we will determine who will become a Chunin and you should know by tomorrow. After you are finished with your second exam please go back to the competitor dorms where you will be spending the rest of today and tomorrow. Good luck."

The Hokage left and I and the seven other competitors sat in the arena, waiting for our names to be called. We were all deathly silent as the first name was called. A green haired boy got up, gulped and on shaking legs walked into the T&I room.

I let out a sigh. Once the first one was through the door the nervousness I had shrunk and I felt like I needed to talk or I was going to go insane. "Rai, how do you think you'll do?"

He looked at me before sighing. "Honestly, I don't know. I've never really been interrogated, but if Konoha's survival depended on it then I would find the strength to survive and the will power to not say a word."

Genma agreed with him. "Mostly I think my card in the sleeve is my stubbornness. They would have an easier time getting a wall to talk than getting me to speak."

I laughed at him and stilled as the next name was called and then the next.

I could feel my heart pound against my chest and the sweat begins to gather at my pores. I had never been this nervous before. I actually felt like I was going to throw up, but I shoved that feeling down and zoned out to my happy place. It wasn't really a place or a memory; it was a series of memories and people. Mostly it was of Kakashi and me playing pranks on people. My favorite being the one we played on Sakumo-sensei.

I opened my eyes and noticed Genma was getting up to go into the room. I gave him a small thumbs up, which he returned before squaring his shoulders and holding his head and eyes straight forward and walking to the room. Only Raido and I were left. Geez, what were the odds that I would be last? Raido's name was called and his face paled before he got up. I tapped his leg and smiled encouragingly at him. "Good luck Rai!"

He nodded and walked stiffly to the room. I let out a deep breath and tried to shake away my butterflies, but they kept coming back. It seemed like it was taking forever for them to call my name and that was making me jumpy. Finally I heard a voice call from the room. "Uzu Naru."

I jumped up and practically ran to the door and when I got there a person grabbed my arm and placed me in a chair. I looked up into a dark skinned man's face with warm chocolate eyes and a kind smile. He looked so familiar to me, but I couldn't place him. "Hello Uzu Naru. I'm Umino Shima and I'm one of the T&I specialists. Today I'll be giving you your password, but before I do, do you have any questions?"

I shook my head and automatically knew where I had seen him before; he was Iruka-sensei's father or at least somehow related to him. Shima leaned to whisper in my ear. "The bird flies underneath the ground, only to hit rock."

I nodded to show that I had it memorized. Then he grabbed my arm and brought me into a dark room where I was roughly handed off to another person who strapped me into a cold metal chair. The lights came on and I saw the sterile white walls and felt my heart pound as I saw the blood stained torture devices on the table. I wanted to cover my mouth with my hand, but my hands were strapped down. So I tried to talk myself down and steady my mind. I couldn't freak out or I would be in trouble.

I took a deep breath and stared intently at the one-way mirror, wondering who was watching me. I tried to feel the chakras, but a pain shot up my arm. I craned my neck to see chakra restrictors attached to my wrists. Crap, those things didn't allow you to sense or use chakra. I sat in silence and waited. Soon the door creaked open and a masked man walked in with black ANBU style mask and a clipboard. "Well, well, what do we have here?"

He walked over to me and traced my whiskered cheek with a finger; I had never felt more disgusted than I did at that moment. He roughly pulled my hair back and pressed a kunai to my neck before stopping and backing away. He brought his hands up to rake through his hair before he walked through the door. I stared after him, terrified of what he was going to do and curious as to why he reacted the way he did.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

The masked man busted into the room next door and threw the clipboard onto the table before rounding on his superior officer. "What kind of sick joke is this? That is a six-year-old little girl in there! She should be playing house with mama, not getting interrogated!"

His superior officer, who just happened to be Umino Shima, just shook his head. "You have to interrogate her or it wouldn't be fair. Treat her just like you would the other girls."

The masked man slammed his hands on the table. "I can't threaten to rape a six-year-old! With the others it was easy. She probably doesn't even know what the word means. How am I supposed to interrogate an innocent child?"

Shima sighed. "I think she's far from innocent or she wouldn't have survived the first part."

"Her teammate could have done all the work."

Shima grabbed the man and placed the clipboard into his hands. "Get in there and put her under a Genjutsu if you can't do it manually. I don't care, just test her so we can be done."

Shima walked out of the room and down the hall where the Hokage was already reviewing the results from the other competitors. The masked man growled before going to open the door, but a hand stopped him and his fellow interrogators looked at him.

"Place her under a high level Genjutsu. Break her or we'll have another Kakashi on our hands and I already can't look my children in the face at night knowing we are sending other people's kids to their deaths."

The man nodded before going back into the room and began casting his Genjutsu.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I tensed as the masked man walked back into the room. Then I noticed the edges of my vision blurring. I sighed and closed my eyes. I felt so sleepy all of a sudden, but I couldn't go to sleep. I opened my eyes and froze at the sight before me.

My beautiful Konoha was once again in ruins. I felt the tears run down my face as I looked at the broken bodies of my comrades and fellow villagers. I raced through the streets, searching for survivors or anything that was alive. My footfalls echoed into the silent night as I raced towards the Hokage Tower. Maybe someone had taken refuge in the tower. I raced up the stairs to find it silent as a tomb and just as deserted. I leaned against the wall and panted.

I closed my eyes, only to open them and see a flash of silver run across my vision. My mind screamed out for the silver blur that I knew was Kakashi. I raced after him, but couldn't get close enough no matter how much chakra I pumped into my feet. He was always one step ahead of me and always out of reach. I stopped running when the burning in my lungs became impossible to bear and I quickly lost sight of the running Kakashi.

I whimpered at the feeling of loneliness as I looked around and noticed I had followed Kakashi completely out of the ruins of the village and into the dark forest surrounding it. I felt someone grab my arm and as I turned to face the person, my stomach dropped and my heart stopped. I silently let out his name into the death filled forest. "Sasuke."

He grinned before slamming me hard into a tree and pinning my hands to it. I kicked out, but now found my arms and feet bound to the tree. He squeezed my arm hard before whispering in my ear. "Tell me that password Naru, and all of this will go away."

I couldn't even comprehend what he was saying at that moment. "What password?"

He growled before squeezing harder. "The password that you were given sweetheart. Tell me now."

I shook my head and the illusion disappeared only to be replaced with another one. Sasuke stood over me and as I looked around I could see that I was strapped to a metal table with medical equipment surrounding me. I watched as he brought a needle to the seal on my stomach; he was going to extract Kyuubi.

I closed my eyes briefly as I felt them glow red. The fox couldn't even fight back right now because he was recovering from the time travel jutsu, so I would have to protect us. The red chakra swirled around me before attacking Sasuke.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

The masked man watched as tears fell from Naru's eyes. The illusion was designed to show the victim their worst fears confirmed. Whatever the girl was seeing was obviously bad. He felt a little upset that he had made her cry, but he needed her to fail so she wouldn't be going on dangerous missions at her age. An adorable little girl like that shouldn't be anywhere near the ninja world.

He listened with a broken heart as her cries became whimpers and she began mumbling a name. He knew that was his cue to start interrogating and he grabbed her arm. "Tell me the password Naru, and all of this will go away."

Naru's hoarse voice croaked out, "What password?"

He squeezed harder before asking her again and bringing a blunted kunai up to poke into her stomach, hoping the pressure would confuse her brain in its Genjutsu induced daze to feel pain. Then something began to feel off about the girl in front of him. The masked ninja stepped back and watched her eyes snap back open. He took another step back as he realized her once blue eyes were now blood red and practically screaming for blood.

Red chakra poured out of her body and the sheer magnitude of it broke the chakra restrictors around her wrists. Three more Jounin quickly filed into the room in hopes of controlling Naru, but her chakra wildly swiped them away, making sure they stayed as far away from her as possible.

Shima ran in and ducked what looked to be like a red chakra tail. He glared at the masked man. "What did you put her under?"

When the masked man told him about the S-ranked Genjutsu he used, Shima was fuming. "Release it. NOW!"

He did and they watched as Naru flopped to the ground and her red chakra disappeared.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I slowly opened my eyes to see five ninjas, including Shima and the masked man, staring at me like they were afraid I was going to blow up or something. I groaned and cradled my pounding head, remembering the things I had seen.

I shivered and looked at them. "So did I pass?"

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

The Hokage had all of the Jounin-sensei, the Fire Daimyo, and several other Jounins reviewing the competitor's files. They were almost finished with the first round when Umino Shima raced into the room and whispered quickly into the Hokage's ear about the situation with Naru.

The Third sighed before asking if they had taken care of her. Shima nodded and handed the Hokage her file. The Hokage stood up and asked the Fire Daimyo to join him for a break. "They can handle it from here, we'll continue later." The Fire Daimyo nodded and the Hokage turned toward his Jounin. "We'll return shortly. Please get some work done while we're gone."

Sakumo grinned at his Hokage behind the mask now resting firmly on his face. He really wanted to know how Naru did, so he walked over to the desk and reached for her file when it was snatched from underneath his hand. Rafu had it cradled in his hand and was glaring at the information.

"Rafu, give me my student's file."

"I'm not through looking at it."

The others in the room could feel the tension mount between the two Jounin as they stared each other down.

* * *

The Hokage and the Fire Daimyo made their way to the T&I room where Naru was now lying down asleep. Sarutobi stroked the girl's head softly before turning to the ninja in the room. "Now someone better tell me who's bright idea it was to use an S-ranked Genjutsu on a six-year-old Genin? Hmm?"

One of the men raised their hand.

"Do tell me Eto-san, why are you trying to sabotage her?"

The black haired ninja bowed in respect before answering. "With all due respect sir, isn't she a little young?"

"Hatake Kakashi was younger than she was when he passed his Chunin Exam."

"Sir, it's not the same."

The Hokage paced in front of his soldiers. "Not the same? They are both six-years-old and children. So why didn't you try and sabotage his Chunin Exam?"

A browned haired ninja answered. "Because we didn't want to make the same mistake twice; we didn't want the adorable little girl to go to war."

The Hokage growled. "Do you honestly think I would send a child this young to the front lines! You are all dismissed until I've decided what your punishment should be."

The shinobi left, leaving the Hokage and the Fire Daimyo to watch over the girl.

"She's powerful isn't she Hokage-sama?"

The Hokage nodded at the Daimyo. "Both her and Kakashi are. We would have been killing their potential if we had made them stay in the academy."

* * *

"Rafu, I'm not going to tell you again. Please give me the file."

Rafu ignored Sakumo and began reading aloud. "Uzu Naru; age 6; Birthday: October 10; Blood: Type B; Sensei: Hatake Sakumo. Let's see here. Competitor did exceptionally well in the Forest of Death, especially for her age. She rescued her teammate from a giant Venus Fly Trap by thinking on her feet and pumping chakra into the plant. Shows exceptional skill in traps and also in using her age to her advantage. She has a very good taijutsu background and worked very well with her partner. Should be considered for Chunin Level because she shows exceptional leadership skills and the ability to improvise and still accomplish the mission."

Rafu glared at Sakumo before throwing the file on the floor at his feet and shaking his head in disgust. "You amaze me Sakumo. What, screwing up your own kid wasn't enough for you? You had to go and mess with someone else's?"

Not a soul moved as Rafu spoke those words. Everyone held their breaths waiting to see what the White Fang would do. He just sighed and reached down to pick up the discarded file before looking up at Rafu. "Even after all of this time you still blame me. It must be really frustrating knowing that I had what you could never have."

Rafu looked like he was going to jump the other Jounin but he didn't. Sakumo's cruel words pounded in his brain as he leaned against the wall and let the other Jounin read over the file. Rafu tried to calm himself down before letting his mind wander back to his sweet Nozomi.

He closed his eyes and thought about her beautiful pale skin and gorgeous ebony hair. He had loved her so much; she had become his angel and his guiding light. Then she met Sakumo, and his light was stolen and he no longer had his angel. Rafu remembered how beautiful she looked on her wedding day and how he wished it were him she was walking down the aisle to meet, but his wishes didn't come true.

He had refused to go to the wedding, but made sure he told her how he felt about their union. His words brought tears to her eyes and Rafu regretted them more every day,

 **It's a sad day when an angel marries a demon and willingly walks into Hell. Silly civilian, you'll never be happy with him. He'll stay around long enough to give you his demon offspring and then he'll leave and in the end you'll beg for me to save you, but I won't. This is your choice and your own personal Hell and you will live with your decision.**

Rafu walked away that day leaving her crying for her once best friend, but he refused to go back to her. He wanted to hurt her as much as she hurt him by marrying Sakumo. Rafu sighed before thinking about the silver haired child he saw every day training with Minato. If there was one thing he was grateful for, it was the mask that covered the child's face. Rafu was spared from having to see Nozomi's angelic features on Sakumo's face.

He hated Sakumo and needed to hurt the man for hurting him. He snarled before letting his tongue say the first thing that came to mind; possibly the last thing he would ever think. "I bet Nozomi's spinning in her grave right now because of what you've done to her son."

Sakumo actually dropped the file and turned slowly to look at the other man. "Stop while you're ahead Rafu."

Rafu shook his head. "I'm actually glad Nozomi's dead, it saved her the pain from having to watch you royally screw up her son."

Rafu never knew what hit him because one minute he was walking towards Sakumo, the next he was pinned against the wall with a kunai at his neck and a very ticked off Sakumo staring him down.

Through gritted teeth Sakumo whispered in Rafu's ear. "I'm not going to kill you because we're going to need all the Jounin we have later, but if you say one more thing about Nozomi or Kakashi, I won't hesitate to let you see the demon you told her I was."

Sakumo pushed himself off of Rafu and walked out of the room for air. Rafu grabbed his neck and felt blood on his hands from a where the kunai scratched him. He hadn't realized how close he just danced with death until that moment.


	11. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo left the room and leaned against the hallway wall in order to cool down. He wanted to hit something, especially something that looked like Rafu. His pent up anger and aggression made his blood boil. It took several deep breaths and soothing thoughts to keep him from walking back through the door and seriously hurting Rafu. Sakumo could handle someone talking about his faults, but when you brought his Nozomi and Kakashi into it, something snaps inside.

He cradled his head in his hands as he chewed over his actions. He hadn't lost control like that since the Second Shinobi War. Rafu just made him angry. It wasn't that he didn't like his fellow Jounin as a shinobi. No, it was because of Rafu's past relationship with Nozomi. Sakumo closed his eyes as he thought about his wife. She had been a civilian, but somehow managed to befriend a lot of Shinobi and one of those included Rafu.

Those two had been closer than siblings. Everyone thought they would eventually marry and settle down for a picture perfect life, but as fate would have it she met Sakumo on the Hatake grounds and the rest was history. Sakumo actually liked Rafu when they first met when Nozomi told her best friend about her fiancé and upcoming wedding. Then the wedding came and Rafu left his best friend in tears.

Nozomi spent their wedding night mourning the loss of her best friend while Sakumo could do nothing but hold her. Not exactly what he wanted to do on their first night as husband and wife, but Rafu hurt her so deeply that Sakumo feared she would never get over it. Somehow she did. Nozomi vowed the next morning that he would never see her cry over Rafu again because it wasn't fair to him and she never did. She let go of her friend and poured all of her love into Sakumo and later Kakashi.

Sakumo sighed deeply before deciding he was in control enough to reenter the room, never once looking toward the mass that was Rafu. Naru's folder had been picked up and placed back on the table, but he didn't care anymore; all that mattered now was the final reviews and the votes. Sakumo couldn't help but wonder, though, how Naru's T&I session went. The file hadn't said anything and that made him slightly nervous.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

My head is pounding.

I wearily opened my eyes to see the Hokage and another man standing over me. He reached out to touch my cheek. "Go back to sleep Naru."

I didn't need to be told twice. I let my weary and aching mind drift back into the comfort of darkness.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

The Hokage sighed before motioning for the Fire Daimyo to follow him out of the room. "She'll be fine as long as she sleeps it off. The Genjutsu didn't harm her mentally, but it took a lot out of her emotionally. We'll never know what she saw, but whatever it was shook her up badly."

The Fire Daimyo nodded sadly. "The next question is did she break?"

The Hokage open and read the folder with her T&I review in it. Shima hadn't put it into the folder with the other information. "He did ask her for the password, but she never gave it to him. Plus, her bloodlimit protected her underneath such dangerous conditions. There's no doubt it would do so again."

The Fire Daimyo nodded before opening the door to a room filled to the brim with tension. He gave the Hokage a confused look before sitting in his seat at the front of the room.

The Hokage couldn't help but notice the looks the other Jounin were giving Sakumo and the glares they were giving Rafu. Mentally Sarutobi sighed. Rafu must have said something about Nozomi. Well, at least Sakumo didn't kill him. "We will now begin our first review of Uzu Naru's Chunin Exam. Have you all read the folder?"

All of the Jounin nodded. They had read it while Sakumo was calming down.

"Opinions anyone?"

A Jounin raised his hand and stepped forward. "I'll admit that she's talented, but, Hokage-sama, she's so young."

"Her age is not up for debate. I want to hear about her skills and her potential to become a Chunin."

The man sighed and in a soft voice told the Hokage his thoughts. "Yes sir, she would make a fine Chunin."

Rafu was outraged. "She's still a child Hokage-sama! She has no business in the shinobi world at her age and shouldn't be punished for her Sensei's ambitions!"

Sakumo made a motion to speak, but the Hokage stopped him. "I want to get this done and over with right now. Uzu Naru took the Chunin Exams because I allowed her to. If you doubt her ability to become a Chunin, then you doubt my ability to make decisions. Is anyone in this room doubting their Hokage's decision making abilities?"

The angry Hokage looked at his paling shinobi before speaking in a firm tone. "Uzu Naru has the potential to become a great Kunoichi. If you don't believe me, then ask one of her interrogators. They put her under an S-ranked Genjutsu in the hopes of breaking her and she didn't break. She's loyal, shows leadership, determination and is quick witted. Everything we need a Chunin to be."

The others in the room were quiet and the Hokage noticed the murderous glint in Sakumo's eyes. "We'll finish the reviewing process tomorrow. I think it's best that we sleep on our decisions before making a final one. Dismissed."

One by one the Jounin left until only Sakumo, the Hokage and the Fire Daimyo were left in the room.

Sakumo spoke to the Hokage in a deadly voice. "They put her under an S-ranked Genjutsu?"

The Hokage nodded. "I'm going to take care of it Sakumo, don't worry. She's fine and sleeping soundly in the T&I room."

Sakumo turned to walk out of the room, determined to make sure his student was okay and the persons responsible were dealt with accordingly. The Hokage stared after Sakumo as he began walking out and knew he couldn't stop the Jounin once he had made up his mind.

"Sakumo, I can't allow you to seek retribution for the way her interrogation was handled, while I sit here perfectly capable of stopping you." Sakumo nodded and looked down slightly ashamed, the Hokage knew him too well. "But I've suddenly become very tired and have decided to retire for the night."

Sakumo grinned behind his mask; the Hokage was giving him free reign to pay back the interrogators. The Fire Daimyo and the Hokage got up from their seats and walked out of the room. Only the Hokage stopped beside Sakumo and spoke to him in a low tone "I just ask one thing." Sakumo nodded. "Don't kill anyone in room 232."

The Hokage then left the room, leaving Sakumo to chew over his plans for the interrogators. He wouldn't kill them, but they would know to never mess with Naru again. With those thoughts filling his head Sakumo walked to the T&I room to check on his only student.

Sakumo entered the dark room and switched on the harsh lights to find Naru curled in a ball sleeping soundly. He checked her over and saw that she was indeed unharmed, but the whimpers she made every now and then told him otherwise.

The White Fang shook his head and picked Naru up to take her to the sleeping quarters for the competitors. There was no way his student was staying in the cold T&I room. He made it to her quarters in little to no time and deposited her underneath the warm covers. Then with quick hand signs a large white wolf appeared by her bed. "Kane, watch over her and make sure she's alright. If anything happens let me know."

The wolf nodded his head and Sakumo turned back to his student. He tucked her in and silently made his way out of the room and down the hall, searching for room 232. Once he saw the numbers and heard the voices on the other side of the door he knew he had the right room.

Sakumo pushed the door open and made sure to leak enough killing intent into the air to make the interrogators squirm. Shima, on the other hand, just sighed in resignation. "Hatake-senpai. What brings you here?"

Sakumo closed the door and locked it for the extra effect. "Uzu Naru is my student and I want to discuss her interrogation."

One of the shinobi in the room, who still wore his blank interrogation mask, shivered at the steely voice of the White Fang.

Shima gave the man a sympathetic look before turning to stare down Sakumo. "What do you wish to discuss about it?"

Sakumo walked closer to the tanned man before looking at the shinobi around him. "I want to know why she was put under an S-ranked Genjutsu. That's a little harsh for a Chunin hopeful don't you think so Umino?"

Shima didn't cower before Sakumo like the others had. He just simply crossed his arms across his chest before answering with a bored drawl. "I will agree with you Hatake-senpai, but as far as I'm concerned my interrogator acted on orders that I should have given a little more clearly. I told him to put her under a Genjutsu, but I didn't specify what level."

Sakumo nodded in understanding before speaking again. "I simply want to know who actually did the performing of the Genjutsu and I'll leave."

Shima sighed and was going to tell Sakumo to leave when the masked interrogator jumped up. "I did it, Hatake-sempai, and I feel horrible about it. I didn't think about my actions and now she's paying the price."

Sakumo nodded. He had been angry before, but he wasn't going to hurt his fellow shinobi, just scare him. He was going to tell the interrogator that it was okay when the man opened his mouth and sealed his fate. "I just didn't want her to become a Chunin at her age just because you wanted another child soldier."

Sakumo's eyes narrowed and the interrogator soon felt a fist connecting with his jaw and followed by one to his stomach. Sakumo spoke into the silence as the man clutched his stomach and tried to catch his breath. "I don't know where everyone is getting the idea that I pushed her and Kakashi to become ninja, but it's getting old fast and I'm not going to ignore it any longer. Next time keep your mouth closed."

Sakumo immediately left the room. He had lost his control for the second time that day and needed to just go home, get in bed and pretend this day never happened.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

"Naru, Naru, Narrruuuu!"

I twisted in my sleep as I heard my name being called by two different voices.

"Come on Naru, don't make me get the water!"

I shot out of bed, preparing myself to block the ice-cold water only to settle down again when it never came. I turned to glare at my assailants only to see Genma and Raido grinning at me. "What time is it?"

Genma glanced at the clock. "Clock says about nine in the morning."

Raido was rocking on the balls of his feet and practically yelled when he started talking. "Okay, enough chatting! How was it Naru?"

I winced at the memory. "How about you guys go first then I'll bore you with mine later."

Genma gave me a funny look before agreeing. "I guess that works too. I mean we have 'til the reviewing is over and I have a feeling that's going to take all day."

I nodded and got comfortable on the bed and motioned for Raido to start his tale.

"Mine was everything I feared it would be. I was strapped to a cold metal chair and left to wait. I'd never been more scared in my entire life, but I kept reciting my family tree to keep my mind off of whatever they were going to do to me. I'd gotten all the way to my great-grandfather on my mother's side when a Kunoichi walked in with this black mask on her face. All I could see were her eyes. She walked up and asked if I wanted something to eat or drink. I shook my head and went back to my family tree while she decided that she didn't like my answer. She grabbed my arm and used her nails to leave three long, angry scratches. Everyone knows that fingernail scratches hurt worse than kunai cuts because the nails are just long enough to scratch the nerves in the skin and they burn. I cringed as she poured alcohol into the scratches to make it hurt worse. She whispered in my ear that all I needed to do was tell her the password and she'd let me go and stop the pain. I ignored her and tried to go back to reciting my family tree when she slapped me hard. I swear I saw stars."

He continued like that until he got down to the end of his story. I'm ashamed to admit it, but I actually tuned him out for a majority of his story. I really like Raido and normally would have listened closely, but my mind was still reeling from the vividness of the illusion I saw. The emotional wound that had just begun to heal had been ripped back open and was now pouring blood. I felt like crying or screaming, but I couldn't because no one would understand, except Kakashi.

I nearly whimpered. I really needed to talk to Kakashi or I was going to go crazy.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

The Hokage stood before the assembled Jounin alongside the Fire Daimyo. "Good morning and welcome to the final review of the Chunin hopefuls. I will call each name and you will be given time to state your opinion on their performances before we vote to see who becomes a Chunin."

All the Jounins nodded as the Jounin-senseis stood off to the side. They were not allowed to participate in the actual review and vote, but they could watch. Sakumo watched as the Hokage pinned up eight pictures on the wall behind him. Each picture bore the face of one of the competitors along with their names written across the bottom of the picture.

He leaned against the wall as the first competitor was taken down for discussion. From where he leaned he couldn't make out any details from the picture except the boy had long brown hair. He did catch the name of the Genin. "Shiranui Genma"

The Jounin talked amongst themselves as Sakumo thought over what he had learned about Genma from his file. Genma had done amazingly well in the Forest of Death. After he met up with his teammate he had given her the completed coin, but she ended up getting captured and the coin was taken. They would have been out of the exam if Genma hadn't tracked the other team down and attacked them with a very thought out battle plan that involved a lot of stealth.

Apparently Genma snuck into the opposing team's camp and completely ransacked it, taking back not only his team's coin but also the other completed coin. All of this occurring right under the guard's nose. Sakumo could only imagine the surprise on the other team's faces when they realized both of their coins were gone. Almost like a ghost had taken them.

He had even done well in the T&I portion. He was put under a Genjutsu, but not one as dangerous as Naru had been put under. Apparently whatever the Genjutsu showed him made him visibly sick, but he never gave away his password. His attention was brought away from his thoughts as a Jounin stepped before the Hokage. One Jounin would tell their decision and then the Hokage and the Fire Daimyo would give their vote.

"We all believe that Genma has amazing stealth and strategy skills. He was also able to improvise and turn a potentially bad situation into one that he could use to his advantage. We also believe he did well in his T&I portion. The Genjutsu used was designed to show the victim their worst nightmares and he got through it, never giving away his password. We vote 'yes' for his promotion to Chunin."

Both the Hokage and the Fire Daimyo also voted 'yes' on the grounds that he would make a fine Chunin and held all the values a Chunin should have.

"Shiranui Genma is officially awarded the rank of Chunin."

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I turned to Genma as he took a breath before speaking. "I wish my T&I session would have been more sculpted toward pain because I could've handled that. No mine had to be a freaking Genjutsu that showed past nightmares. It wasn't anything real scary, but I've always had this recurring nightmare where I can't talk or move and I'm lying in a bathtub that is slowly filling up with water. I can feel and see the water slowly rise and the higher it rises the more I try to move and get someone's attention, but no one ever comes. I can hear footsteps and they keep getting closer, but then they fade away and I'm left in the bathtub with the water still rising. The water usually gets all the way up to my nose and begins pouring into my lungs before I wake myself up. Well, apparently this Genjutsu doesn't work that way. It's an uncomfortable feeling to have imaginary water fill up your lungs. After they released the Genjutsu and I was free to go I nearly vomited on the interrogator's sandals. I guess it was just a reflex and my body was reacting to the Genjutsu. "

I smiled softly and let out a shaky breath. "I had a Genjutsu too, but mine showed me my worst fears. It was horrible and I still feel bad."

Raido touched my arm. "You don't have to say anything if it was that bad. I should have realized earlier that something was bothering you. Why don't you lay back down and we'll leave."

I did lie back down, but I stopped them from leaving. "No stay. I'll just sleep and you guys can talk. I just really don't want to be alone right now."

They nodded and sat beside the bed, softly talking while I drifted back into an uneasy sleep.

I decided I liked both of their calming presences before letting my mind shut down.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

The three occupants of the room never noticed the white wolf that cracked open the door before quietly walking away with a smile.

His master would be pleased to know that Naru was being taken care of by those two.

With a white flash the wolf raced down the hallway and waited patiently for his master.

* * *

The Hokage had just finished placing two pictures in the non-Chunin pile. Both of the competitors, a boy and a girl, had broken down during their T&I session and had given their passwords to the interrogators after exactly three minutes. The Hokage sighed. They would have to step up their T&I teachings at the academy.

He pulled down Naru's picture before placing it back on the board and moving on. He wasn't opening that can of worms until the last minute. Sakumo had moved to sitting on the floor as the rest of the reviews commenced, another picture was brought down from the board. "Namiashi Raido"

Sakumo took a good look at the boy. He had been Naru's teammate and had been a very worthy partner. He was excellent in Taijutsu and also very resourceful. He had knowledge of several survival techniques. Raido also gave a certain intimidation factor because of his size. He was bigger than most boys his age and had been perfect to balance Naru's small size out.

His T&I session went well. His session was geared more towards physical pain. He had kept his cool and not freaked out. The only reason he wouldn't get promoted was if they penalized him for underestimating an opponent, which could get a ninja killed.

"We have decided to vote 'yes' for Raido's Chunin promotion. He showed skill in Taijutsu, Ninjutsu and strategy. He has a very high tolerance for pain and was also able to block out just about everything the T&I team threw at him. He's going to make a fine Chunin."

The Hokage nodded. "I also vote 'yes.'"

The Fire Daimyo nodded his head. "I vote 'yes' as well, even though he underestimated his opponent and didn't pay attention to his surroundings he was able to overcome his mistakes and I truly believe he learned from them."

The Hokage placed his picture on top of Genma's. "Namiashi Radio is officially a Chunin."

Sakumo patiently waited through the next couple of reviews. He was wondering when they would get to Naru. A dark brown haired girl and black haired boy made Chunin and only Naru and a green haired boy was left on the board. The final boy did not receive the Jounin vote or the Fire Daimyo's vote and only Naru was left. The Hokage wearily sighed as he removed Naru's picture from the board and showed it to the Jounin. "Uzu Naru."

Instantly the Jounin started talking animatedly amongst themselves. Sakumo heard a lot of them arguing she was just too young and innocent to become a Chunin and that it was different for Kakashi because he was a boy. Sakumo smirked. If Naru had heard that she would have went ballistic and proved exactly what cute little girls can do when underestimated. Had they learned nothing from her results?

Sakumo wanted to show them the error of their ways, but he knew it wasn't his place to speak while they were discussing it. So, he bit his tongue and hoped they would be fair.

To Sakumo it seemed liked hours before they finally reached a decision. "We have discussed Uzu Naru long and hard. On one hand, we admit she does show amazing potential and has all of the skills necessary for promotion, but we think she would do better if she waited another year before becoming a Chunin. We respect our Hokage's decision to let her participate in the exams, but she would better service our village as a Chunin if she were to grow up some. We have decided to vote 'no.'"

Sakumo clenched his fists and bit his tongue hard so he wouldn't say anything. Then the Hokage spoke. "I respect my Jounin's decision, no matter how blinded they are. Uzu Naru is much more than just an adorable little girl. She is on the track to becoming one of the greatest ninja of her time. She has amazing teamwork and leadership skills, not to mention with her bloodlimit she has virtually an unlimited supply of chakra. Naru's trapping skills are excellent and she's proved that she has a good background in Taijutsu, Ninjutsu and Genjutsu. I do admit that she has her shortcomings, but what shinobi doesn't? I would be a fool to pass up the opportunity for that girl to join the ranks of the Chunin. So I vote 'yes.'"

The Fire Daimyo looked at the Hokage and then back at the Jounin. "I agree with the Hokage. She's going to make an excellent Chunin. I vote 'yes.'"

Sakumo actually smiled this time; two to one. Naru was a Chunin. "Uzu Naru is officially a Chunin."

The Jounin in the room nodded in grudging acceptance.

"Now get the competitors so we can tell them the results."

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

Genma and Raido woke me up a couple of hours later with the exciting news that the judges had reached their decisions.

I walked between them as we made our way to the open arena where the awarding would take place. I rubbed my eyes and smiled as I saw Sakumo-sensei. He winked at me before turning back to the Hokage.

All eight of us stood at attention before the Hokage. "I would like to congratulate all of you for making it through this Chunin Exam. Regardless of the outcome of today you must continue to train hard and strive to be the best for your village. I will call out the names of the Chunins in no particular order and you will step forward to receive your Chunin vest."

We all nodded and the silence of the room rang in my ears as we waited for him to call the first name. "Namiashi Radio."

I smiled at my exam partner as he received his Chunin vest and stood proudly to the side. I couldn't believe how proud I felt for someone I had just met and who had thought so little of me at first. I smiled. We all make mistakes and apparently he learned from his. I only hope I gained a new friend from this experience. I was brought out of my thoughts as I noticed two more had joined Raido with their Chunin vests, a boy with black hair and a girl with dark brown hair.

I looked around and noticed the numbers were dwindling fast. A jolt of fear slammed into my heart. What if I didn't make Chunin? I watched as the Hokage looked at his list again before calling out. "Shiranui Genma."

Even though I was a nervous wreck, I managed to grin at Genma. He was quickly becoming another friend of mine and I couldn't be happier with his promotion. I chewed on the inside of my cheek and tried to catch Sakumo-sensei's eye, but he refused to look at me. I tried to control the butterflies in my stomach as the Hokage looked at the list again and opened his mouth to speak. I don't know if he was doing it on purpose or if it was just me, but he seemed to talk in slow motion.

I could see his lips forming the letters long before I ever heard what he said. "Uzu Naru."

I completely blanked out for a moment before numbly walking forward and standing before the Hokage. I looked at Sensei and saw the pride that lit up his eyes. I grinned before turning my attention back to the Hokage who handed me a vest that looked like it would swallow me whole. "Sorry Naru, but this is the smallest size we make and as you can see it's not small enough."

I nodded my head. "It's okay Hokage-sama, I'm just happy to have the title and, besides, I'll grow into the vest."

I stood beside the four other Chunins as the Hokage finished the ceremony and congratulated us all for our accomplishments. My heart was bursting out of my chest from happiness. I was officially a Chunin and couldn't be happier.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

After the ceremony was over, Sakumo made his way over to Naru who was talking with Genma and Raido. "Naru."

She turned to smile at him before introducing him to her new friends. "Sakumo-sensei, this is Namiashi Radio and Shiranui Genma"

Sakumo waved to the two boys. "I'm glad I met the two boys who took such good care of Naru this morning."

Both seemed nervous and slightly in awe of him. The long-haired boy Genma looked up at Sakumo before speaking. "You are the White Fang!"

Sakumo smiled at him. "Yep, that's what people call me. I hate to break this up, but Naru we need to get back. Minato wants to meet us later to celebrate. Do you want to invite Genma and Raido?"

Naru looked at the two boys, but they both declined. "We already have plans, but maybe later."

They both left, leaving Naru and Sakumo standing together. "How did you know they visited me?"

"I'm a Jounin sweetie, I know these things." Naru rolled her eyes at Sakumo and together they left the Tower and headed back to the house.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I watched Aki run around my legs before playfully nipping at my ankles. I laughed before picking her up and holding her close. I couldn't be any happier with my birthday present than I was. All I had to do now was house train her.

I was rubbing her stomach as Minato-sensei came through the door. "Sensei, you do know that it's rude to just walk into people's houses like that."

Sensei waved my comment off. "You forget that I'm amazing and don't need permission to enter your house and come check on you."

I rolled my eyes at the 'amazing' comment. "So what are you doing here Sensei?"

He took Aki out of my arms and scratched her behind the ears. "Well, I figured that I would wait here for Naru to see how she did."

I nodded. "I'm sure she did fine; you're just worried about her."

He smiled softly at me. "Of course, I'm worried 'kashi, she's my daughter."

I stared at Sensei, slightly shocked at the change in his attitude. It made me wonder what had brought this side out of him.

Sensei put Aki down before looking at me. "Did you know that Naru was my daughter?"

I froze. I had no idea how to answer this question without him knowing I was lying. I sighed before answering. "Not until after she told me. I did notice she looked like you, but had no idea she was your daughter."

I silently prayed he would believe my lie and luckily he did. He ruffled my hair before sitting on the couch. "Well, did you enjoy my birthday gift to you?"

I grinned at him from underneath my mask. "Yes I did!"

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I walked slightly ahead of Sakumo-sensei with my mind still reeling from my Chunin promotion. I mentally snickered; I was officially the same rank as Kakashi, which is a feat I had never accomplished before. As the house came into sight I practically ran to it and up the stairs through the front door. "Guess what!"

I rushed into the living room to find Kakashi lying on the floor playing with a puppy and Dad sitting on the couch reading a book. Both turned to look at me as Sakumo-sensei walked in behind me and stood at the door.

"What Naru?"

I turned to Dad before smiling. "I made Chunin!"

The room was filled with congratulations and Dad hugged me tight. "I knew you could do it Naru! I'm so proud and happy you are back."

The puppy ran over to me and nuzzled against my leg. I bent down and picked her up then she licked my nose.

I giggled. "Who is this?"

Kakashi came over and congratulated me. "Her name's Aki. She was my birthday present."

My eyes widened. I hadn't forgotten about his birthday, but I hadn't had time to get him anything. I handed Aki back to him. "Did you enjoy your birthday?"

He nodded before eye-smiling at me. "How was the Exam?"

I opened my mouth to tell him, but Dad stopped me. "How about we wait 'til supper before you start telling us about the Exam because we are going to celebrate!"

Sakumo-sensei nodded in agreement and told us to get ready. Kakashi put Aki down before nodding and I grabbed his hand and pulled him after me. "Let's go! I'm starving and need some real food!"

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

The group arrived at the restaurant just in time to get a private booth in the back. Minato smiled as his daughter chatted excitedly with Kakashi about his birthday. She told him that she got him a gift, it just wasn't ready yet. He waved it off telling her that he didn't need any more gifts, but she could do him a favor and train with him while his dad went on his mission.

Minato watched as Sakumo led the kids to the booth and was going to follow after them when a sign caught his eye and an absolutely evil plan formed in his mind. He warned them he would get even for their prank and today Kakashi's revenge was soon to be served. Minato whispered in the ear of the waitress before happily walking to the booth where they were seated.

Naru was patiently waiting for him to get there and as soon as he sat down she began telling them all about Raido and her battle with the plant. Minato was a little ticked when she came to her T&I session. Naru didn't talk much about it, only mentioning that it wasn't fun. Sakumo whispered to Minato that the interrogators had put her under an S-ranked Genjutsu, but not to worry, he had taken care of it. Minato nodded his head grimly before turning his attention back to Naru. She was smiling again as she told about how nervous she was.

She turned to Kakashi. "Were you nervous at your Chunin Exam?"

Kakashi thought for a moment before answering. "I guess, but I don't really remember it all that well, just the excitement of becoming a Chunin."

Minato smiled as they talked. They were becoming friends fast and he figured that was a good thing because he would need Kakashi's help when Naru was older. He feared that his little girl was going to be very beautiful and a target for perverts, who of course would have to be dealt with. Together Kakashi and him would keep all of the hormonal boys away from their Naru.

The food finally came out and everyone quieted down and began eating their fill. Naru had been running on berries and ration bars for days, so she savored every bite of the delicious food.

Minato noticed that it was almost time for dessert, which meant it was almost time for his revenge! He watched Kakashi laugh with Naru and talk with Sakumo. Poor boy was so unsuspecting at the impending attack that Minato almost felt sorry for him. Of course, then he remembered the prank and quickly shoved that feeling down.

The waiting staff began assembling at the front of the restaurant and a chocolate cake with a big candle was held securely by one of the waitresses. Minato mentally snickered as they moved closer and as they got within earshot began singing. "Happy Birthday to You, Happy Birthday to You, Happy Birthday dear Kakashi! Happy Birthday to you!"

Minato laughed out loud as Kakashi's visible expression morphed from shocked and confused to ticked off before finally resting on embarrassed as the waitress placed a party hat on top of his silver hair. Said hat was obnoxiously bright with the words "Birthday Boy" printed across the top.

Sakumo winced in sympathy at his son before elbowing Minato. Naru just giggled and finger swiped a taste of chocolate icing. "Happy Birthday Scarecrow."

Kakashi turned to glare at a smugly triumphant Minato. "I told you I would get my revenge!"

The boy finally let out a small laugh before offering Minato a piece of the cake. "You should have a piece Sensei, since this was your idea."

Minato smiled at the maturity in his student and watched as Kakashi stood up in the seat to hand him a piece of cake. He reached out to take it, but before he could get a good grip on the plate he noticed a familiar gleam in Kakashi's eye. Kakashi smirked behind his mask before propelling the plate forward, successfully hitting his target.

Minato was in shock. His prank had been turned back on him! Through the clumps of chocolate cake on his face he could see a doubled over Naru laughing hysterically and a grinning Kakashi. Sakumo was trying not to laugh, but quickly lost the battle as he handed his friend a napkin. "You shouldn't have underestimated him."

Minato grimaced before picking a piece of cake off of his face and popping it into his mouth. "Hey, I still got cake!"

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

After we got back from celebrating Naru's promotion, Sensei headed home, leaving us to settle in for the night. Dad went to bed fairly early and I found myself playing with Aki and Naru in the living room. I couldn't help but notice that Naru seemed out of it. I pulled myself off of the floor and stood in front of her.

"Naru, what's the matter?" She looked away before opening her mouth and shutting it again quickly. I sighed. "Please Naru, tell me what's wrong."

She groaned before picking up Aki and hugging her close and speaking in a small whisper. "The interrogators put me under a Genjutsu and it made me see my worst fears and do you want to know what fear that was?"

I nodded my head.

"It was the destruction of Konoha and I saw Sasuke trying to remove the fox and then there was you. I couldn't catch up to you, no matter how hard I tried."

I awkwardly patted her back. "It's okay Naru, it was all just an illusion and it's never going to happen again." I leaned to whisper in her ear. "Sasuke will not destroy Konoha and you will never ever have to worry about Akatsuki if I can help it. I'm going to protect you Naru, but we have to get stronger together so we can face our mission together."

Naru smiled at me before standing and hugging me close. Aki had wiggled out of her grasp and was currently curled up beside my leg.

"Tomorrow will be a better day Naru, I promise."

She nodded and turned in for the night. As she went upstairs to her bedroom I hoped she would be all right and if she wasn't then I wasn't going anywhere.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo stood before the Hokage the next morning to receive his orders. "Sakumo, I have a B-ranked mission I need done."

"When do I leave Hokage-sama?"

The Hokage glanced at the scroll. "In two days, which should give you enough time to prepare."

Sakumo nodded and bowed to his leader as he took the mission scroll.

"Sakumo, how was Kakashi's birthday?"

Sakumo smiled at his leader from behind his mask. "I think he had a good time. At least I know he liked his present."

The Hokage nodded before taking out a pipe and puffing the tobacco. "You know I usually don't give advice on parenting, but I do want to give you some. I know you are worried about Kakashi not having many friends."

Sakumo crossed his arms over his chest. "Hokage-sama, he has one."

"I know. A lot of that is because he flew through the academy and other children his age are intimidated by him. Another reason is that he's either training or doing missions and just doesn't have the time, but I know he can act like a child. Naru's helped us see that side of him and I do admit that it is refreshing to see them acting like children."

Sakumo nodded. "Well, what do you advise Hokage-sama?"

"Give the boy a birthday party with children his own age and force him to associate with them. They may be just academy students now, but one day they will join the ranks and by that time it may be too late to establish bonds."

The White Fang smiled as he thought about how Kakashi would react to having a birthday party. Well, at least this way Naru would get a chance to attend seeing as she was taking the Chunin Exams during his birthday. "I'm going to need names Hokage-sama."

The Hokage smiled before producing a list. "I've been working on this list since I got the idea this morning."

Sakumo just shook his head as he began reading the list. "Thanks Hokage-sama, for everything."

Sakumo glanced at the list again as he left the office and couldn't stop himself from grinning. The Hokage had outdone himself this time and with that final thought he took to the roofs to find Minato. He was going to need help if he wanted to pull this off.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I stared in disbelief as my father told Kakashi that they were going to throw him a birthday party. I knew this wasn't going to end well for Kakashi. I could already see the fight or flight in his eyes as the words "children your own age" and "games" echoed through his ears.

"I'm a ninja Sensei; I don't have time for this."

Dad patted Kakashi on the back. "You do have time for this. Besides, Naru didn't get to spend your birthday with you. It would be nice if she got to attend your party."

I glared at him for dragging me in on this before turning to Kakashi. "It wouldn't hurt Kakashi, even if Dad's being annoying."

He sighed in resignation. "When is it?"

I watched the twinkle in my dad's eye grow brighter. "In about an hour."

We both glanced at each other in shock before yelling at Dad at the same time. "In an hour?"

Dad nodded. "Now go outside and wait for your guests."

We walked outside and Kakashi went directly to Sakumo-sensei. Then I saw something that really surprised and inspired me. I could tell Kakashi was openly pouting behind his mask. His eyes had grown big and watery as he begged Sakumo-sensei to cancel the party. I was impressed; Kakashi could do the whole cute puppy dog eyes thing really well. I watched Sakumo-sensei falter slightly before holding fast and telling him firmly the guests were on their way and there was nothing he could do about it.

Kakashi sighed in defeat before grabbing my hand to lead me around to the front of the house.

"It's not going to be that bad Kakashi."

He just looked behind me and pointed. "Yeah, well, look who got on the guest list."

I slowly turned to see large fuzzy eyebrows, black shiny hair and a broad smile. I felt my eye twitch. Might Gai was attending the party. I looked at him hard before noticing that he wasn't wearing that green jumpsuit. Instead he was wearing a dark green shirt and white pants.

I blinked in surprise. He was actually dressed normally. Gai shyly approached us and bowed slowly before blushing at my open gawking at him. "Hi, I'm Might Gai."

I blinked again. Since when had Gai been quiet? I looked at Kakashi out of the corner of my eye and noticed his bewildered expression. "Hi Gai, I'm Uzu Naru and this is Hatake Kakashi."

Gai smiled slowly at us before speaking again. "Congratulations Naru for becoming a Chunin and Happy Birthday Kakashi."

Gai entered the house and I just turned to face my partner. "Who was that and what did they do with Gai?"

Kakashi scratched his chin in thought. "Okay, maybe Gai wasn't always as annoying as he is in the future. Maybe this time around I can get out of being his eternal rival."

I laughed before two more people showed up. It was Sarutobi Asuma and Yuhi Kurenai. Kakashi actually was the one to blink in surprise on this one and under his breath he whispered to me. "It's amazing how they try to hide their relationship in the future when everyone knows they belong to each other."

I nodded in agreement. I had forgotten most of my childhood memories, but I remembered the events leading up to the end. I almost wished that Kurenai was older with a rounder stomach and that Asuma was smoking.

We greeted them and waited for the final guests to arrive before heading in after them.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

The party actually wasn't that bad. I do admit I had something close to fun with the others and it helped that Naru was there to back me up. Of course, that doesn't mean the night went smoothly. Naru was still mesmerized by the fact that Gai was so different.

She was openly gawking at him a majority of the night and if she didn't stop our cover was going to be blown. I finally got tired of it and stood in her line of vision so she couldn't see him, but she still craned her neck to see around me.

As to what happened after that, I'm still not entirely sure because one minute I was talking to Naru and the next minute shy little Gai walked over and declared that I was his rival. I gaped at him before looking back at Naru, who was trying not to burst into laughter. One question was on my mind.

What in the world brought this on?

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo and Minato watched the kids interact with a bored eye. They were all getting along and talking and Kakashi hadn't left. So they both considered the party a success. Sakumo, though, had begun to notice that Naru couldn't keep her eyes off of Gai for some reason.

It was like she was struck dumb by him or something and then he noticed the way Kakashi was going out of his way to try and catch Naru's attention. The White Fang raised a silver eyebrow. Could his son be jealous? Of course, Sakumo had to intervene or this would end badly.

He walked over to Gai and whispered in the boy's ear about how Naru was staring at him. "Gai, I think you should go over there and say 'hi' to Naru. She's been watching you a lot and I think she likes you."

Gai blushed a little before whispering back. "But Kakashi's with her right now and I don't want to cause any trouble."

Sakumo patted Gai on the back. "Nonsense, every growing young man needs a little rivalry."

Gai raised a fuzzy eyebrow. "A rivalry sir? What is that?"

Sakumo laughed quietly. "A rivalry is where you and your rival try to outdo each other in order to prove who the best is. You can have rivalries over skills or even pretty girls can cause rivalries."

Gai looked interested as he watched Naru and Kakashi talk. "How long do these rivalries usually last?"

Sakumo rubbed his chin in thought. "Well, usually until a victor is determined or until eternity is over, whichever one comes first."

Gai smiled brightly at Sakumo and walked towards Kakashi and Naru. Minato made his way over to Sakumo. "What did you do Sakumo?"

Said man just grinned as Gai finally made it to Kakashi and pointed his finger at him before quietly declaring. "You are now my eternal rival and I must defeat you to prove I am the better of us and completely worthy of Naru's attention."

"I have just succeeded in making Kakashi a life long friend."

Minato smiled to himself. Sakumo was actually pretty clever when he thought things through.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I looked between Kakashi and Gai to see who would speak first. Then I realized exactly what Gai had said; worthy of Naru's attention, since when was I a prize in their rivalry? Besides, Kakashi didn't think of me that way.

I pinched the bridge of my nose and waited for one of them to speak or at least move.

Asuma had taken this opportunity to stand beside me. "Eternal rivals?"

I sighed. "Yep, that's what he said."

Kakashi finally snapped out of his daze and spoke first. "What?"

"I believe you heard me. We are now eternal rivals. What should our first match be?"

I tried to stifle the giggle that made its way up my throat only to catch the end of it. Kakashi glared at me. I glared back before speaking. "How about I decide your first official match? Then the loser of this match can decide the next one."

Kakashi looked at the wall before nodding his head slightly in agreement and Gai smiled shyly at me before asking, "What are the rules Naru?"

I shrugged my shoulders. "I have no idea."

Asuma raised his hand. "The first to lead by three wins is the ultimate winner of this rivalry and thus the better of the two. The matches can be anything from ninja skills to rock-paper-scissors and the loser has to complete a task of the winner's choice."

Kurenai shook her head and interjected. "No, there has to be an already predetermined consequence agreed on by both rivals."

I smiled at both of them before turning back to Kakashi and Gai. "Do you two agree to the terms?" They both nodded. "Well, let's get the first match started!"

I closed my eyes in thought as I tried to think of something they could both do. Anything ninja related was out because Gai was still in the academy and that would give Kakashi a leg up. I opened my eyes to look around the room. All we had were party favors, pudding, cards and candy corn. Wait, candy corn was a good idea!

I looked closely at the three bags of candy corn that had been set out on the table. An evil thought developed as I grabbed the bags and handed one to Kakashi and one to Gai. "Now the first one to finish off their bag of candy corn wins, but if you throw up you automatically lose."

I stood back beside Asuma and Kurenai and watched as Kakashi and Gai stared each other down. Kakashi's hand flew through a Genjutsu so his face would be covered, but he could still eat the candy.

Asuma raised his arm and nodded to both to get ready. "And….GO!"

Gai and Kakashi both tore into their bags with rapid speed and seemed to be eating at a good pace, but very quickly their paces slowed and their faces began to turn green. Kakashi made a disgusted sound in the back of his throat as he chewed on a handful of the candy corn. Gai was still shoveling them down, but every time he swallowed he looked like they were all going to come back up.

I scrunched my nose as I watched them continue to put the candy corn in their mouths and force the candy into their stomachs. I looked out of the corner of my eye and saw Dad and Sakumo-sensei taking bets on who they thought would win. Dad put down $50 on Gai and Sensei put down $50 on Kakashi.

I sighed at their childishness before turning back and rooting for both Gai and Kakashi. I actually didn't care who won as long as no one vomited on me. Finally they both made it to the bottoms of their bags. Kakashi had just a single handful left and Gai had a handful and a half left. They both glared at each other before tipping the bags up and dumping the rest of the sickly sweet candy into their mouths.

Everyone watched in silence as the two rivals chewed and tried to not let it come back up. Then at the exact same time they raised their hands to signal they were finished. I grinned at them both. "Tie match! Congratulations, you are both now 1:1 in your rivalry!"

Kakashi didn't even have time to answer me as he shot out the door and retched into the bushes. Gai was hot on his tail the entire time. I smiled at their disappearing bodies before going back and talking to Kurenai. Those two were going to be fun to grow up with.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

The weeks quickly flew by and soon Kakashi and Naru found themselves enjoying the cool November weather as they trained with their swords.

The missions had picked up lately and both Minato and Sakumo were leaving the village for longer periods of time. They always left instructions for training, but the two Chunin rarely followed them.

A great example would be what they were currently doing; Sakumo had left them instructions to practice Taijutsu, but they both decided to practice Kenjutsu instead. Kakashi swiftly dodged a slash to his shoulder and countered with a quick upward slash.

Naru jumped back and called for a break.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I panted heavily. We had been at this for the past two hours and neither of us wanted to quit. "Kakashi, let's take a break."

He nodded and gracefully dropped to the ground before lying on his back and watching the clouds overhead. I urged my tired body to move, slowly making my way to his side to lie beside him and watch the clouds with him. I pointed to one right above us. "That one looks like Aki."

He lifted his head to look at me. "No it doesn't, it looks like a turtle."

I raised an eyebrow at him. "How did you get turtle out of that?"

He waved off my question and was about to speak when a voice echoed through the training grounds. "You two don't do a thing you are told, do you?"

I turned my head and looked up to see Sakumo-sensei walking into the clearing. He had been gone for two weeks and I smiled as Kakashi ran to him. "How was your mission Dad?"

Sakumo-sensei smiled gently at us before answering Kakashi's question. "Long and exhausting. Why don't you to go back to the house and wait for me there, okay?"

I looked at Sensei in confusion, as did Kakashi, but we both grabbed our swords and headed back to the house. Kakashi turned around and looked at his father one more time before walking beside me. "Something's wrong Naru; he just seemed out of it."

I nodded in agreement, wondering what had Sensei so shaken up.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo waited 'til they were both gone before punching and kicking at the training post. His meeting with the Hokage had not gone exactly the way he wanted it to go. He stopped his assault on the post to lean against it, thinking over the meeting.

 _Flashback….._

 _The Hokage looked at Sakumo with sad eyes before speaking. "The war is heating up drastically and I'm going to need all of my Chunin to start doing missions away from the village, which means Naru and Kakashi are going to start going on higher ranked missions with you and Minato."_

 _Sakumo nodded, he knew something like this was going to happen._

 _"There is only one problem, and it kills me that I have to order this, but Kakashi and Naru have not had their first kill yet, have they?"_

 _Sakumo thought back before shaking his head. "No sir, they have not had to take a life yet."_

 _The Hokage sighed. "I'm assigning you, Minato and those two a mission to assassinate some men who are known spies for Iwa. At the most there are two men and one woman that have been sentenced to death and ran from their fates. It should be an easy mission; the problem is going to be on the way back."_

 _Sakumo nodded, instantly understanding where this was going._

 _"You and Minato are not to help them unless they run into trouble. They need to get their first kill over with so they can adjust to the lifestyle of a ninja. I wanted you and Minato along so you two can comfort your children afterwards because they are soon to lose some of their childhood innocence."_

 _"Does it have to be done now Hokage-sama?"_

 _The older man nodded sadly. "Yes, I don't want them to get on these higher rank mission and freeze because they had never killed before. That could get them killed if I allowed them to go into the field like that."_

 _Sakumo sighed before agreeing and taking the mission scroll from him._

 _End Flashback….._

He sighed again as he stood up and massaged his hands where he beat into the post. Sakumo knew this had to happen sooner or later, but he hoped it would be later. His heart hurt when he thought about sweet little Naru taking a life. Then he thought about Kakashi and couldn't imagine letting his son do it.

His "daddy" instincts were screaming at him for accepting the mission, but at the same time he knew they would benefit from it in the end.

Sakumo shook his head one more time before picking himself up and heading to the house. Just how was he going to explain this to Minato, or better yet, to the kids themselves?


	12. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo sighed as he made his way back to his house where Naru and Kakashi were waiting for him. He didn't know exactly how he was going to explain this to them, or to Minato for that matter, but he knew he had to handle it delicately and like a shinobi. He sighed once more before turning around and heading towards Minato's house. It was a great possibility that Minato had returned from his mission, so Sakumo figured he might as well start there and get back up.

In no time at all he had made it to the house and was at the door knocking, hoping that his friend would be there and come help explain the mission to the kids. Sakumo waited, watching the blooming garden sway in the wind. He was turning to leave when he heard rustling and footsteps coming from the other side of the door.

Minato cracked the door and growled. "This better be important."

Sakumo just crossed his arms and stared his friend down. "Excuse me?"

Minato blinked his eyes and apologized after he recognized who it was. "Sorry Sakumo, I thought it was someone else. I just got home and was busy."

Sakumo placed a hand on the door to push it open. "Whatever it is can wait Minato; I need you to help me with something."

Before Minato could protest, Sakumo was inside the house and heading towards the kitchen. A feminine voice floated down the hall. "Minato? Who was it?"

Sakumo then realized why his friend had taken so long to answer the door. "Oh Minato, I'm sorry. I didn't know."

Minato waved it off. "We were just taking a nap. Neither of us has had much sleep lately."

Sakumo turned to watch as the redhead came down the hall in her Jounin uniform with a Leaf headband strapped proudly to her head.

"Hey Sakumo, how's Kakashi?"

"He's good. Did Minato tell you about Naru?"

Kushina nodded and sat in one of the kitchen chairs. "Your new student right? Yeah, he said that she's an adorable little girl with some mad ninja skills."

Sakumo turned to give Minato a look, which said man tried to ignore by playing with the collar on his Jounin uniform. Mentally Sakumo was seething; he hadn't told her about Naru being his daughter yet. "Actually, they are why I need to talk to Minato."

Minato perked up at this. "Why? Is something wrong?"

"I think it would be best if you sit for this Minato, we have a mission."

Minato did as Sakumo suggested and sat beside Kushina, taking the scroll Sakumo held out to him. He read it before rolling it back up. "Okay, what does an assassination mission have to do with Kakashi and Naru?"

It was Kushina who understood first. She grabbed Minato's arm and looked at Sakumo. "Kakashi and Naru haven't had their first kill yet, have they Sakumo?"

Minato closed his eyes. "I was wondering when it would come to this. Seven years old and killing for the first time. How are we going to handle this?"

Sakumo looked at Minato. "I don't know Minato. The details are very specific for this mission. We are only allowed to do the cleanup. Kakashi and Naru are required to do the actual assassination and we have to make sure they each take at least one of the targets down." He sighed before continuing. "At least we'll be able to comfort them afterwards. Killing is the most unnatural thing for a human to do and for a child to have to take a life? The heavens must weep for that loss of innocence."

Everyone in the kitchen was silent as they let the mission sink into their minds.

Sakumo sighed before speaking again. "I want to talk to them tonight and we'll leave tomorrow morning. It's soon, I know, but the longer we stay in Konoha the harder it's going to be to track the traitors. Will you come and help me talk to them?"

Minato instantly agreed. "I'll be there soon."

Sakumo left soon afterwards, leaving a heavy hearted Minato in his wake.

"Minato, stop sulking and speak. I'm not a mind reader and if I was I wouldn't waste my powers reading yours." Kushina stopped when she didn't get a rise out of him like her comments usually did. She then understood that this mission was really bothering him. "Minato, talk to me."

"I don't know how to put what I'm feeling into words. I'm angry and upset and morally disturbed."

Kushina stood up from her chair and sat in Minato's lap. "Listen here blondie. You did a pretty good job putting some of it into words and I understand how hard this is for you to do. Kakashi's grown on you and it hurts to know that he's going to be hardened after this, but at least you and Sakumo will get to be there for Kakashi and Naru. I know all of this is bothering you and I just want you to know that even though I'm hard to talk to sometimes, I'm still a pretty awesome listener."

Minato sighed heavily. He wanted to tell her about Naru, but couldn't get the right words to form. "I just figured that the Hokage would keep Kakashi and Naru inside the village until they were older, but I was wrong and I understand why. I know in my head that this has to happen, but my heart can't understand why."

Kushina placed a gentle kiss on the top of his head. "Minato, I know this is tough, but I'll be here for you no matter what because I kind of like you."

Minato snorted before resting their foreheads together. "Just kind of?"

She flashed his favorite grin. "Okay, maybe on a scale of one to ten, you are about a four."

Minato kissed her lips. "That's one higher than last time dear."

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I watched Naru throw the ball down the hall for Aki to fetch. Aki was still a puppy, but she was growing fast. A lot had happened in the two months since I had gotten her. She was now house trained and partially trained in obedience. The reason I say partially because I kind of let her get away with a lot of stuff when Dad's not home. A great example would be how I let her play on the couch and eat from the dinner table, but she understands when those things are acceptable and when they are not.

I patted her head when she came back into the living room with the ball in her mouth.

"Hey Kakashi, what do you think has Sakumo-sensei so worked up?"

I looked at her before chewing on my bottom lip and answering. "It could just be mission stress because he has been going on a lot lately."

Naru didn't comment and continued playing with Aki while the gears in my head began turning. I didn't remember a lot about my childhood, but I did remember my Dad's death and the mission that caused his downfall. I noticed my heartbeat increased as I tried to remember which mission it was that caused his downfall, only to not be able to recall it. I did remember I was seven at the time of his death, so I figured the mission was soon to be issued to him and he would be faced with the same decision all over again.

I sighed and was shaken from my thoughts as Dad walked into the house and went directly upstairs without even speaking to us. Naru gave me a look. As I was making my way to go upstairs after him he came back down and sat on the couch in front of us. "Dad, is something wrong?"

He gave me an unrecognizable look before smiling gently. "You'll find out soon enough, but first we have to wait for Minato."

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I watched Sensei closely, he seemed so distracted and I couldn't help but wonder what was going on. I went to open my mouth when the door opened and in walked my Dad. I grinned at him, "Hey Daddy!"

He looked sad for a moment before returning a small smile. "Hey sweetie."

He nodded to Sakumo-sensei and began speaking. "We have something we need to discuss with you two."

Kakashi and I moved to sit directly in front of the couch while Dad walked over and sat in the armchair to the side of us. Sakumo-sensei then continued where Dad left off.

"I was called to meet with the Hokage today about a mission he wants us to do as a team. Brothers Fujiwara Goro and Fujiwara Haru were sentenced to death for treason against the village for giving information to Iwa in exchange for money. Last night, right before midnight, there was a jail break from the ANBU prison. They, with the help of ex-ANBU member and Haru's wife Fujiwara Airi, escaped from the prison and are now suspected to be somewhere close to the border of Fire Country."

Kakashi looked at his father quizzically. "Is Airi with them?"

Sakumo-sensei nodded his head. "Yes she is, but she was injured in the breakout and should be slowing them down considerably."

Dad nodded. "That and she isn't going to be much help to them if they get into a fight with the injuries she has."

Sakumo-sensei continued. "Now our mission is to find them and dispose of them."

I blinked. "Assassination?"

Sensei nodded and spoke in a soft voice. "Yes, but this mission has specific requirements."

Kakashi blinked in confusion. "What are you talking about Dad? What kind of specific requirements?"

Sensei looked out the window and spoke the words that turned my blood cold. "The Hokage wants the assassination done by you and Naru. He wants you two to get your first kill over with so it won't hinder you on future missions."

The room was silent as Sensei told us that we were going to do the assassination. I turned to looked at Kakashi who was currently tracing a pattern in the floor with his finger. He looked up quickly. "When do we leave?"

Sakumo-sensei gave him a strange look before answering. "Tomorrow morning and we should be close to the targets by nightfall, that way you guys have darkness as your cover."

Kakashi nodded and I felt like I was drowning. In all my years as a ninja I had never taken a life. I had never been faced with the decision to kill and here it was in mission form. How could the Fujiwara family do this?

I felt my bottom lip tremble. Would I be able to carry out the mission?

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I watched Naru out of the corner of my eye. She wasn't taking the news very well and I knew it was because she had never taken a life before. I looked up into my Dad's eyes and saw the guilt there as he watched our reactions. Minato-sensei was watching Naru intently. She still had a scared look in her eye and I could already see the mental torment she was going to put herself through.

Naru was just too innocent to take a life and I hated that it had to be done this way. Naru and I both knew the Fujiwara family from the marketplace. They had a little girl that was about five-years-old. She would be without parents after we got through with them.

I turned my attention back to Dad as he finished his speech. "I suggest you two take your katanas for this mission, so you can get used to carrying them for long distances. Also we pack up tonight and leave before daybreak, so you two should go on and get some sleep. You'll need it."

I nodded and stood up after we were dismissed. Minato-sensei had taken to looking out the window and Naru was still lost in her thoughts. I gently shook her shoulder and she stiffly stood up and went to her room. Sensei then followed after her. I sighed and looked back at Dad. His eyes were still clouded with the same guilty look he carried right before he killed himself.

I nearly whimpered when I recognized the look and instantly knew I needed to do something to take the look away. I calmly walked over and gave him a small hug, just like I used to do when I was younger. He seemed shocked at first before relaxing into the hug and wrapping his longer arms around my body.

He gently whispered in my ear. "I'm so sorry this has to happen like this."

"It's okay, we're ninja. Sooner or later this was going to have to happen."

He didn't reply and didn't seem to want to let go of me, so I just let him hold me. Maybe if I let him hold me long enough, he would let his guilt go. He held our hug for a little while longer before surprising me and placing a kiss to the top of my head. "Go get ready Ka-chan, make sure you pack extra weapons and clothes."

I nodded and went to my room, leaving behind my silent father.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I didn't realize how hard it was to think about killing another human being. I knew that ninjas weren't the good guys all the time and I knew I would have to do things I didn't agree with, but to actually have a mission given to me like that was a wakeup call. I would kill someone's daughter and son. I would take the life of a sister and brother. I would make someone an orphan.

I continued to chew on my bottom lip when a knock sounded on the door. "Hey Naru, can I come in?"

"Yeah."

Dad walked in with a sad look in his eye and I turned away from him and looked out the window. "I know this is a little sudden, but I'm going to be here for you afterwards. We might not be able to help with the assassination, but we'll be there, okay?" I nodded and he walked behind me and hugged me tight. "Whatever happens tomorrow, I want you to know that I love you and that I'm not going to look at you differently. You'll still be my little girl."

I looked up at his saddened face and gave him a reassuring smile. "I understand. Will the killing part be hard to do?"

He sighed before releasing me and sitting down on my bed. "The killing part goes pretty easy, it's the freezing during the mission and the guilt afterwards that we are so worried about. Just don't worry about it right now. Get ready and get some sleep okay?"

I numbly nodded and he gave me a gentle hug before walking out of the room.

I picked up my pack and began filling it with my items.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Minato walked down the stairs and into the living room where Sakumo was still sitting. "You're letting the mission get to you Sakumo."

He waved Minato comment off. "How can I not let it? Minato, tonight will be the last night they'll sleep without nightmares. We have just condemned them to years of blood stained hands at seven years old, the age when most kids are just learning what death is. I know they are both capable ninjas, but I'm beginning to agree with the Jounin that voted 'no' for Naru's promotion. What if we've made a big mistake?"

Minato sighed before sitting beside his friend. "I feel guilty too, but something else is on your mind besides this assassination."

Sakumo nodded. "I guess I'm just letting stress get to me and not to mention I've been thinking a lot lately."

Minato clapped his friend on the shoulder. "There's nothing to worry about Sakumo. Yeah the kids are going to experience something horrible tomorrow, something a child should never have to go through, but we'll be there to pick up the pieces just like you said to me and Kushina."

Sakumo got an evil look in his eyes. "Oh, and speaking of Kushina, how come she doesn't know about your daughter yet?"

The man before him started stuttering before choking out an answer. "I just haven't found the right time yet. I'll get to it eventually."

"When Minato?"

"Soon Sakumo, I promise. Just let me find the right time and I'll tell her okay? Just don't say anything."

Sakumo sighed but agreed he would keep his mouth shut. "Okay, I won't, but you have to tell her."

The blonde haired man nodded his head, got off of the couch and made his way to the front door. "I will. I guess I'll be here early in the morning. Do I need me to bring anything?"

"Well, what did your sensei bring for your first kill?"

Minato raised an eyebrow before smirking. "A hooker, but I doubt that would be appropriate in this situation."

Sakumo let a laugh escape his lips before bidding his friend goodbye. He walked upstairs to his room and sat on his bed to pull his pack out from underneath it. When he raised his head, his eyes landed on the framed picture that rested on his dresser.

The glossy picture showed a grinning one-year-old Kakashi being held by his mother while Sakumo stood beside Nozomi with his arms wrapped around her waist. Sakumo closed his eyes and sighed heavily. What would Nozomi say if she heard about this mission? He shook those thoughts off quickly and began packing. He might not be doing the actual killing tomorrow, but he was going to make sure he was prepared in case something went wrong.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I ran my fingers through my hair in annoyance as I tried to decide what to pack for the mission. Minato-sensei had finally left Naru's room and I knew Dad was in his room from the banging of the dresser drawers. I had already put my kunai and shuriken in my weapons pouch and had Hanshou lying beside my pack.

Mentally I was preparing a battle plan for how tomorrow night would go; there were multiple ways to take a life. I had been taught that fact since the day I first entered the academy, but technically I had never killed before in this lifetime. I didn't know how that was going to affect me tomorrow, so I knew I needed to have a backup plan in case I froze.

I looked around my room and smiled when my eyes spotted my birthday present from Naru.

 _Flashback…._

 _Naru stood in front of Kakashi about three weeks after his birthday. "I finally got your present Kakashi!"_

 _Said boy folded his arms over his chest and eye-smiled at her. "I thought I said you didn't have to get me anything, Naru?"_

 _She rolled her eyes. "I know, but I wanted too. So here."_

 _She shoved a wrapped package into his hands. It was slightly heavy and when he shook it something rolled around and sounded like metal hitting metal. "What is it?"_

 _Naru smirked before sitting in the grass. "Well, normal people would open it to see."_

 _Kakashi ignored her and opened the box and found five small steel balls. He picked them up and instantly felt his chakra react to them. "What are they Naru?"_

 _The blonde grinned before removing one of the balls from his hand. "They are called conductors. I had been thinking what I could get you for a while now and almost gave up when Daddy mentioned something about the weapons shop getting a box of specialized weapons they hadn't ordered. I guess the merchants didn't notice the box wasn't supposed to go to Konoha and once the owners of the shop realized the mistake the merchants were gone. So I went and checked these weapons out. Apparently whoever ordered them either had a lightening affinity or lived in Lightning Country because a majority of the weapons conducted electricity. Well, I just so happened to remember that you were an oddball and probably had one of the only lightening affinities in Konoha. So I decided to get your present from there. That's when I saw the conductors. These things are amazing! They are virtually undetectable by any bloodlimit and when you channel your chakra into them you can control the amount of shock power these balls give off."_

 _Kakashi grinned. "So they could give off enough electricity to stun or kill if needed?"_

 _Naru nodded her head. "Yep, what you do is take one of the steel balls, hide the other four and when you are ready to set off the trap you channel your chakra into the ball that you have."_

 _He grinned wider. "That way you could set them off and still attack without giving off your location. I love them Naru. Thanks."_

 _She waved the compliment off. "No problem."_

 _Kakashi smirked deviously behind his mask. "Want to try them out?"_

 _End Flashback…._

The conductors would be perfect to take on this mission.

We were dealing with three adults, two of whom had shinobi training, and being as small as we were we needed every advantage we could get. I made sure to put the steel balls in the small zipper compartment of my pack before throwing in a couple of ration bars and a few soldier pills. I knew Dad would have the medical kit and the tents, so the last thing I needed was my sleeping bag and then I would be packed and ready for the mission.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

That night all four shinobi slept fitfully.

At the Hatake house, Naru couldn't stop thinking about the mission and what was required of her. She was afraid of freezing and even more afraid of using her shinobi skills to take a life. She turned restlessly in her sleep until mental exhaustion finally won and allowed her a dreamless sleep.

In the next room Kakashi sat on his bed with his eyes closed as battle plans dancing across his mind. He wanted more than anything to protect Naru from the actual killing and tried to see if there was any way around it. When he found none he finally slipped beneath his covers letting the facts settle into his brain. He couldn't save Naru from having to kill tomorrow. They would both grow up fast because of this mission and no amount of planning would change that.

Sakumo flipped onto his stomach and sighed as he buried his face into the pillow. In his head he was going over the guidelines he and Minato had to follow tomorrow. They couldn't do the actual assassination unless there was some unforeseen trouble. They had to treat Kakashi and Naru like subordinates and forget that they were their children, at least until after the assassinations were done. They had to make sure each Chunin took a life. Sakumo groaned again before turning to lie on his side and stare at the wall. Tomorrow would be the hardest thing he ever had to do as a father.

Across Konoha, Minato wrapped his arms around Kushina, but couldn't fall asleep. His mind was heavy with thoughts about the next day's mission and about telling Kushina about Naru. Naru was becoming one of his most precious people and he hated seeing her so scared and sad. He truly wanted to take her sadness away and complete the mission for her, just like he knew Sakumo wanted to do for Kakashi. Minato tightened his grip around Kushina and wondered if she would leave once she found out about Naru. He closed his eyes and knew in his heart that Kushina would never leave, it would be a shock for her, but she would never leave him. In the haze of sleep, he barely recognized his last conscious thought; even if Kushina were to leave him because of Naru, he would stick with his daughter.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I felt rough hands shake me awake from my uneasy sleep the next morning. I looked up and saw Dad's masked face looking down at me. "Come on, wake up 'kashi. Make sure you go eat something before we leave. We head out in about an hour."

I nodded, quickly dressed and headed into the kitchen with my pack and katana. Naru followed behind me, rubbing her eyes and shouldering her own pack. We both dropped our packs near the kitchen door and placed our katanas on the counter. Dad walked in the kitchen and quickly grabbed the breakfast that was laid out on the table before heading back upstairs. I grabbed a piece of toast and a glass of orange juice and watched as Naru copied my actions. She looked tired. "Did you sleep okay last night?"

She shook her head. "No, I had a lot on my mind, but once we get started I'll be fine."

I closed my eyes and sighed. "We'll be fine Naru. I promise."

She nodded, but remained silent. I continued eating my toast and by the time I was finished Minato-sensei walked through the door.

"Good Morning!"

I rolled my eyes at him. He just had to be a morning person didn't he? I don't know whether he was trying to break the gloomy mood that settled over the kitchen or if he was just being annoying when he walked over to Naru and lifted her up to sit on the counter before standing in front of her and tickling her.

Her laughter floated around the room and broke the gloomy mood that settled in the house. Dad then walked in with mirth dancing in his eyes. "Minato leave my student alone, it's too early in the morning to be this annoying."

Sensei rolled his eyes at Dad. "Who rained on your picnic?"

"It's 5:30 in the morning Minato, nice is something that doesn't function for me until at least 8."

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I let my laughter die down as Dad talked to Sakumo-sensei. I needed that little bit of distraction he had given me and I loved him for it. I took a deep breath and hopped down from the counter. "When do we leave Sensei?"

He looked at me before stretching. "We can leave now if everyone is ready."

Kakashi and I nodded, quickly grabbing our packs and katanas before heading out the door after our dads. Each adult carried a tent and I knew Sakumo-sensei was carrying the medical kit just in case; we were better safe than sorry. We made it to the gates in no time at all. As the Chunins on gate duty checked over our IDs and gave us clearance to leave the village, Dad and Sakumo-sensei pulled both of us over to the side of the road for a final mission debriefing.

I looked up into their eyes as Sakumo-sensei told us the conditions of the mission. "Minato and I were given a set of guidelines we have to follow once we leave the gates and we have to follow them or our mission is a failure. Once we leave we have to treat you like subordinates and you must remember that our word is law. Understood?"

I nodded at the same time Kakashi did and with a final glance at the village center we were off and jumping through the trees after Sakumo-sensei and Dad.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo led the group so he could track the targets better and about an hour into the hunt he had found an abandoned campsite. Kakashi and Naru landed beside Minato as they walked into the clearing. There was evidence of a fire, not to mention the place reeked of blood and patches of grass were stained dark from where someone had been seated.

"Airi must have been bleeding badly for there to be this much blood."

Minato nodded in agreement. "Report said she had a head wound and a broken leg. Haru was never real good with medical jutsu, so he isn't going to be much help to her. Neither is Goro."

The White Fang quickly summoned his ninken and soon two medium sized brown dogs appeared in the clearing, instantly alert and waiting for orders. "Shiri and Tobias, can you two find a trail from the scent of this blood?"

The ninken immediately began sniffing the ground and the patches of grass that had dried bloodstains. Soon they found the trail and took off.

"They've got the trail. All we have to do it keep up. Make sure your eyes are peeled."

Minato told the kids to get in-between him and Sakumo. He would take up the rear and once more they took to the trees following closely after the ninken.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I let out a heavy breath as we landed in another clearing a couple of hours later. Dad's ninken were following the trail, but apparently it just kept going in circles. I watched as Dad closed his eyes in thought. "Is it possible that they are looking for someone or something? There's no way I would stick this close to Konoha if I was being hunted."

He nodded. "It is possible, but I'm beginning to think they are just lost. Remember, Airi is the only one who has been a ninja for the last five years. Haru hasn't left the village or trained since his daughter was born. He's at a disadvantage because now the wife that was supposed to help them escape to freedom is now injured and not very helpful. I can tell from the way their campsites have been so messy and erratic that they are terrified and at a complete loss."

I scanned our surroundings and Dad motioned for me to come closer to him. "Kakashi, look at this."

He pointed to the tree trunk. It was wet. I gently reached to touch the wetness and discovered it was blood. "It's fresh. That means they were here recently right?"

He nodded and called Tobias over to him. "Here boy." the ninken sniffed the tree. "Good boy, do you have this scent? Okay, go find their location and report back."

Dad motioned for Minato-Sensei to come over and they talked in low tones I barely heard, but I caught snatches of the conversation. "The bleeding is getting worse and they show signs of slowing down. We should be close to their newest campsite because I have a feeling they can't go very far with Airi being in the condition she's in."

I stopped listening to them and walked over to Naru. "Naru, how are you holding up?"

She smiled softly at me. "I'm fine for now, but I really just want this to be over with."

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

Kakashi tried to talk to me. I had been quiet for a majority of the hunt. In fact, we all had, but I was too focused on the task at hand to really talk with him. Each of us was too bogged down with our own thoughts and worries to even attempt to speak, but Kakashi always made sure to check on me. I felt lucky to have a friend like him.

I sighed and Sakumo-sensei called for a break. It was about noon and we still had plenty of time to find the targets, so it was the perfect time for a break. Dad passed out ration bars and I took the cardboard tasting bar before sitting down away from the bloodstained grass. Kakashi took his and sat beside me after removing his pack from his back. We all ate in silence; only the sound of rough grains being chewed could be heard in the clearing.

All too soon Sakumo-sensei called the break over and off we took back into the woods. I couldn't help but notice the smell of blood was getting stronger. I looked at Kakashi and saw he had noticed the smell as well.

We were getting closer.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo immediately noticed the smell of fresh blood and sweat was getting stronger. Tobias would be reporting back soon and then they could set up camp and scout ahead. Shiri was currently running a perimeter around this area of the forest making sure there were no traps or ambushes planned for them.

Sakumo trusted his ninken with his life and knew they would pull through for this team. Tobias appeared to his left and Sakumo called the entire team to a halt. In hand signals, he informed Minato to scout ahead and see how close they were.

Minato silently made his way through the trees and stopped just above a shaded clearing. He could see three figures crouched around a battered tent.

The woman of the group had dirty blonde hair that was stained with dried blood. Her leg was leaking blood from a protruding bone and every so often her breathing would hitch from the pain. That was Airi, the traitor that once called the ranks of ANBU home. Her body would have to be burned.

There was a black haired man covered with drying blood and mud. His weary eyes kept scanning the forest in hopes of watching for an attack. That was Haru. His daughter looked almost exactly like him, Minato thought as he watched the man touch the woman's leg gently and receive a sharp intake of breath. Haru was an ex-ninja; his body would have to be burned as well. Minato searched for a couple of minutes before his eyes landed on Goro, the civilian merchant who just looked scared.

He looked like he was having second thoughts, but too bad for him it was too late for those. Minato shook his head at the black haired civilian who had tear tracks running down his face. The poor man knew he was going to die. It was just a matter of time for them.

Minato silently returned to the team and whispered to Sakumo his findings. "Naru, make a clone and let the clone keep watch while we set up camp and wait for nightfall."

Naru nodded and soon a second blonde haired little girl appeared and disappeared into the thick brush.

Sakumo led the team about three miles north of the targets and they set up camp next to a stream. He knew they would need it later for clean up.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I helped Dad set up the tent while Naru helped Sensei. I figured our sleeping arrangements had already been determined because they both expected tonight to go bad. I honestly didn't know how I would react, but I knew I wouldn't cry.

I was a shinobi and shinobi didn't cry because of a mission. I sighed and entered the tent to set the sleeping bags in there and Dad handed me the packs. I took mine and moved the conductors to my weapons pouch so I wouldn't forget them. I left Hanshou in the tent before exiting. I began gathering the wood for later and soon Naru joined me with a sad smile.

I handed her a couple of sticks and together we searched for more dry wood. Dad and Minato-sensei brought water up from the stream using some pots they had packed. I carried my load and laid it down at their feet and Naru did the same. Dad looked us over. "Why don't you two try and get some shut eye while we wait for nightfall."

I wanted to protest, but remembered Dad's warning; their word was law. I nodded and went to my tent and Naru went to hers. The lack of sleep from last night made it real easy to fall into a deep sleep.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

Once I got into my tent I instantly fell asleep. Didn't surprise me because I hadn't gotten any sleep the night before. Dad came into the tent right before nightfall and woke me up to come and eat. I walked out and stretched my muscles to get the kinks out before sitting beside Sakumo-sensei who handed me some bread. I blinked in surprise. "Where did you get the bread from?"

He smiled. "You two need something on your stomach besides those cardboard bars and we can't cook anything with our targets so close by so I figured this morning that I would take some toast from the house. Eat up."

I took a bite of my toast as Kakashi came out from his tent, rubbing his eyes. Sakumo-sensei handed him a piece of toast and he sat down beside my Dad to eat it. I watched as he pulled down his mask to reveal a face I was still getting used to seeing.

I grinned as I thought back through the haze of my memories and remembered all the times Team 7 wondered about the mystery of what was under Kakashi's mask. We tried everything to see underneath that darn piece of material and never succeeded.

My grin widened as I took another bite of toast. Who would have guessed all we would have needed was a surprise attack and a strong current?

 _Flashback…._

 _Together Kakashi and Naru made their way to Konoha's main bridge to wait for Minato who was training Naru while Sakumo was on his three-week mission. Minato warned them he would be a little late, but to wait for him before starting their training._

 _So when they finally made it to the bridge, Kakashi leaned against the railing and watched the clouds while Naru sat on top of the rail watching the roaring waters below. The late October weather had been very wet and the water level had risen, making the current of the mighty river stronger than usual. Her blue eyes watched as orange and brown leaves swirled violently on top of the water before being dragged underneath the current and spewed out further downstream._

 _"Why didn't he want us to start our training?"_

 _Kakashi continued staring at the clouds while answering. "Don't know, maybe we have a mission instead?"_

 _Naru sighed and pulled herself to her feet, balancing on the rail without using her chakra. "Naru, don't fall."_

 _She spun lightly around on her feet. "I'm not going to fall Kakashi, remember I'm a ninja."_

 _He rolled his eyes and muttered underneath his breath. "Yeah, a ninja that has no conscious awareness of her surroundings."_

 _Naru blushed as she remembered the last mission she had taken where the child she was babysitting nearly scared her half to death because he snuck up behind her and shouted. "Well, if you think you're so high and mighty Hatake, then you get up here and give it a go!"_

 _Kakashi looked at Naru and tried to resist the challenge in her voice, but in the end his competitive nature won out. He soon found his body balancing over the roaring waters of the swelling river._

 _Naru was just a few inches in front of him and was talking over the roar of the water. "Maybe he has a new training method for us?"_

 _"Maybe something to increase your awareness?"_

 _Naru spun around and growled. "Okay! I have a problem with being aware of my surroundings, drop it. Everyone has a weakness and mine just happens to be awareness."_

 _Kakashi grinned beneath his mask and teasingly answered in a sing-song voice. "Whatever you say Naru!"_

 _Kakashi closed his eyes to eye smile at her. She growled again and spun around, only to come face to face with her father. Naru's eyes widened in shock and she lost her footing as she tried to back away from Minato's sudden appearance. The shock of falling caused her to grab behind her and latch onto Kakashi and together they both plummeted down into the roaring waters. Minato stared in shock at the series of events that happened right before his eyes and was mentally berating himself for not acting sooner. He honestly never expected Naru to fall or take Kakashi with her._

 _He instantly ran down the bridge and onto the bank, watching for any sign of them. Beneath the waters Naru kicked off of against the rocky bottom and surfaced just as Kakashi did. He grabbed her arm and together they swam across the current to the safety of the bank._

 _Naru took several deep breaths before looking up to see a panting Kakashi, but as soon as she looked every thought process she had was automatically turned off. For sitting in front of her coughing the water out of his lungs was a mask less Kakashi. He watched as Naru's eyes widened before she reached out to touch his cheek. When her finger touched flesh instead of material, Kakashi realized that his mask had been pushed beneath his chin by the waters._

 _"K-k-kakashi, y-your m-mask." Naru's teeth chattered with every word as the chilly water seeped into her body. A blush found its way across Kakashi's cheeks and he hung his head allowing water logged silver bangs to hide his face from Naru's vision._

 _Naru didn't understand why he hid it. He wasn't disfigured in any way, so really he had no reason to be ashamed of it. She reached out again with cold fingers and lifted his chin to have another look and when he didn't resist she knew it was all right._

 _Her blue eyes took in the young face; the chubby cheeks that still held a lot of baby fat, the nose that was straight and delicate, and the lips that were holding a pout. He looked so much younger than seven-years-old and then she knew why he wore it. With the face of a child, no one would take his skills seriously. They would see a baby pretending instead of an excellent shinobi._

 _Naru could see her father waiting further up the bank, quiet and watching them. He knew how secretive Kakashi was about his mask and he wanted to see how this would play out._

 _Naru gave Kakashi a smile before pulling the mask up. She knew he was uncomfortable with it off. "Come on. We need to get out of these wet clothes before we catch a cold."_

 _Kakashi nodded and helped Naru to her feet. Before he let her hand go he whispered to her. "Thanks Naru."_

 _Naru just smiled and walked in front of him. "Hey, that's what friends are for."_

 _It wasn't until later when Kakashi ate dinner without his mask on that Naru realized just how much he trusted her._

 _End Flashback…._

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I watched as Naru's grin grew bigger and bigger and couldn't help but wonder what she was thinking about. I sighed and took another bite of toast.

"Kakashi and Naru, finish up. You two head out soon and we need to have a final briefing."

I watched Naru's grin disappear as she was reminded we had a mission to do. She finished her toast and nodded that she was done. I quickly finished mine and pulled up my mask to give Dad my full attention.

He pulled out the scroll. "Naru's clone hasn't reported back, nor have Shiri and Tobias. So the targets haven't moved from their camp since earlier. Your mission is simple. Infiltrate their camp and eliminate the targets by any means necessary. No matter how much they beg or cry you cannot stop your mission. They deserve to die because of their betrayal of Konoha."

Naru whimpered slightly. "What about their daughter?"

Dad growled slightly. "Don't think about that Naru. Forget the Fujiwara that lived in the village and forget their family ties. They are no longer those people you once knew. They gave up any right to be pitied the moment they sided with the enemy for money."

Naru nodded but hid her eyes from us. I knew she couldn't forget about Hana, Haru and Airi's four-year-old daughter.

Dad continued. "I don't want to sound harsh Naru, but the more you think of them as people, the harder it's going to be to do the assassination. Now once you have taken care of them, we'll come in and handle clean up. You have 'til morning, use your time wisely."

We nodded and together got up and got our equipment ready. I grabbed Hanshou and Naru slung Tsukiakari on her back before we both began checking our shuriken and kunai supplies. I also saw Naru had a couple of smoke bombs and an exploding tag or two. I let a heavy breath go as Naru stood up straight and looked towards me to see if I was ready.

I rechecked to see if I had my conductors and nodded. "Ready?"

"As I'm ever going to be."

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Minato watched Kakashi and Naru stand side by side before moving out as the night began to get darker. Soon their silhouettes disappeared into the brush and the only thing that gave away their position was the swaying of a broken branch. "Sakumo, how ya holding up?"

The other man stretched. "I'm worried, but confident. They'll get the job done, but I still want to make sure they are okay."

"Is that why Tobias and Shiri are still out there?"

Sakumo nodded. "If they run into trouble, those two will instantly attack and alert us to the danger. Also, they are watching to make sure they both have an active role in the mission."

Minato nodded. He understood Sakumo was worried that Kakashi would complete the entire mission to save Naru from having to kill. "We're in for a long night Sakumo."

The White Fang nodded and looked towards the heavens to take comfort in the stars.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

Kakashi was just a few steps in front of me as we swiftly jumped tree branches for the three miles to the target's campsite.

We landed about half a mile from their campsite and decided to continue the rest of the way on foot. Kakashi and I hid our charkas, walking in silence. By now the darkness gave us full cover and only a seasoned shinobi would be able to detect us.

I let out a shaky breath and stopped as the campsite came into view. Haru had opted to build a small campfire for Airi. She looked so pale from blood loss and pain. She wasn't going to be that hard to put out of her misery. I chewed my bottom lip and watched as Haru worriedly checked her pulse and tried to get her to take a drink of water. The love was written all over his face as he cared for her.

I looked at Kakashi and he shook his head at me, as if to tell me to stop thinking like that. Goro was sleeping soundly away from the other two and was the most untrained of the three.

Kakashi and I watched our targets with morbid fascination. In just a few short hours they would no longer be alive because of our mission.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I signaled for Naru to follow me and we swiftly traveled to the other side of their campsite where Goro was sleeping. In standard hand signs I told her the plan for Goro. "Civilian, let's not prolong his death, kunai to the throat while they aren't looking. They'd never know."

Naru nodded and I took out a kunai, but before I could step into the clearing, Haru walked over and checked on his brother. Naru and I held our breaths and I could hear the pounding of our hearts against our ribcages. Haru stopped and scanned the surrounding woods only to shake his head and lay beside the fire. Exhaustion getting the better of him.

We waited and before long he was sleeping. Airi was still awake and though she was weakened and dazed by pain, she was still ANBU and a good ninja.

Naru touched my shoulder and signed. "Need to take males out, female won't be much trouble."

I agreed and reached into my pouch, pulling out the conductors, Naru's eyes widened. "Who?" She signed and I pointed to Haru.

"Can you get the conductors over there?"

She nodded and a clone appeared beside her and with a series of hand signs the clone turned into a small squirrel. The squirrel clone took one steel ball in its arms and gradually pushed each ball into a square formation around Haru. Now all I needed to do was use my affinity and the electricity should kill him instantly.

I took a deep breath and signed to Naru. "Take female down, get behind her and slit her throat."

She nodded and we went to our respective jobs at opposite ends of the clearing.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I walked into the clearing behind Airi. She was breathing heavily and holding her leg. The blood wasn't pouring from her leg anymore, but her pant leg was still damp from blood. I quietly removed Tsukiakari and started slowly moving towards her from behind. I controlled my breathing and shut down the voice screaming for me to stop. I took another step forward about the same time Kakashi bent close to Goro with his kunai touching the civilian's neck. From the look in Kakashi's eye he was hearing the steady beat of the pulse beneath the paper thin skin.

I took another step and watched as Haru rolled over in his sleep. Kakashi stopped his movement and tightened his grip on the conductor in his hand. One wrong move from Haru and Kakashi would activate the conductors. I took another breath and was almost directly behind my target. One more step and I would be almost touching her.

Kakashi looked at me from across the clearing as I took my final step. I never noticed the branch that was underneath the fallen leaves. The horrifying crack sounded throughout the clearing, instantly wakening Goro and alerting Airi.

Airi turned her torso around holding her own kunai, which I blocked with my blazing katana. Kakashi wasted no time. With a slight flick of the wrist his kunai cleanly cut through skin and blood poured from Goro's jugular. He died instantly and the blood from the kunai dripped onto Kakashi's hands.

Haru had been awakened as well and was getting up from his position.

"Haru's up!"

Kakashi spun quickly and poured electrified chakra into the conductor. I watched the steel balls glowed blue before sending a stream of electricity into Haru's body. His screams tore throughout the clearing and his body dropped heavily to the ground with a thud.

Airi snarled before attempting to stab me with her kunai. I sliced with Tsukiakari at the same time and hit Airi as Kakashi came from the side and shoved Hanshou into her side, hitting her major organs. I pulled the bloodied Tsukiakari away from the cooling body of Airi and looked at Kakashi. I felt tears collect in my eyes.

I didn't know who technically killed her, but I did know I wasn't feeling so proud of myself. We looked around the clearing. Three corpses that just five minutes ago were breathing.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I wiped the sweat off of my brow as Dad and Minato-sensei came into the clearing moments later. Sensei looked at me with saddened eyes and tried to tell me something. I tried to listen, but the sticky blood on my hands was making me sick to the stomach. Not to mention when I had pushed Hanshou into Airi the blood splatter hit me across the mask.

I could smell the coppery substance everywhere. Even Naru was covered in Airi's blood from her hit. I considered Airi Naru's kill because we didn't know who had actually killed her. I was just about to say something when Haru moved slightly.

Dad motioned for one of us to finish. I couldn't help but notice that he wouldn't even look at me. I stepped forward and he held up a hand to stop me. "Technically you both killed Airi, but Naru has to complete her own kill in order for this mission to be complete."

My eyes widened and I wanted to protest. Haru was weakened and paralyzed from the electricity. Naru wouldn't just kill him while he's helpless.

He crawled slowly over and tried to reach out to us. His voice broken as he called out for my father. "PP-lease! I-I'm s-sorry. MM-my b-baby nn-needs me!"

Naru had started crying and was gasping for breath. "I can't Sensei. I can't!"

I watched Dad grab her arm firmly. "You have to do this Naru. NOW!"

I snapped at him. "There's no need to yell at her!"

I shrunk back as my father loomed over me. "Remember Kakashi that I am the superior officer and I decide how the mission is carried out. If she refuses to carry out my orders, then I'm obligated to make sure she carries them out no matter what."

I nodded numbly and looked over at Naru. She was silently pleading with her father. Minato-sensei turned to her with emotionless eyes and simply pointed to the crying man.

"I-I d-dd-didn't w-want it t-to happen l-like this!"

Naru whimpered, picked Tsukiakari up and walked over to the crying man. She kicked him over and swiftly slit his neck.

Naru stared deep into the dying man's eyes, transfixed by the receding life in them.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I felt numb all over. Dad and Sakumo-sensei removed the heads to take back to the Hokage, placing them in a sealed scroll. Together they burned the bodies to keep the secrets of Konoha from other nations.

Once they were finished and Kakashi and I retrieved our weapons before starting the silent trek back to our campsite. I felt so heavy with guilt. I had taken not one, but two lives tonight. Little Hana wasn't going to have her mother or father because of me. I had made her an orphan and submitted her to a life without her parents.

A sob escaped my throat and Sakumo-sensei stopped and turned around. Kakashi looked at the ground and Dad jumped to my side instantly. I didn't protest as he picked me up and I placed my head at the crook of his neck. The tears fell down quickly, soaking his shirt.

"Shh, baby, shh. It's okay. Shhh. We're almost to camp and then we'll get you out of these ruined clothes and into something clean. Okay?"

I nodded against his neck and continued to cry.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I knew Naru wasn't going to take this well. I kept looking at the forest floor until Dad touched my shoulder.

I instantly looked up and tried to reassure him with an eye-smile, but it felt half hearted to me. His hand didn't leave my shoulder until everyone was ready to leave again. Minato-sensei went ahead with Naru and Dad stopped a little ways before camp and led me to a stream away from where Naru was going to bathe.

I had started feeling strange. I wasn't sad because of what happened, but there was something else there. I didn't even know I was staring blankly at the water until Dad touched my shoulder again. "'kashi? You need to get clean."

I nodded and began stripping from the blood stained clothes.

I stood in my pants before wading into the river. I watched as the blood mixed into the water and felt a churning feeling begin in my stomach. All of a sudden I felt everything come up. I raced back to the bank and lost the last meal I had eaten.

Dad was by my side in an instant and as I coughed up stomach acid that burned my throat as it came up. I realized that three people were dead by my hands. I had taken a life and I could still feel the slick liquid on my hands and face. Dad patted my back in comfort. I stood up and wiped my mouth before going back into the water and scrubbing my hands. I had to get the feeling off, but every time I brought them up I could still feel the blood coating them.

Dad waded into the water and took my raw hands into his own. The guilt in his eyes was eating me up. I knew I couldn't let him see me like this. I wasn't weak and I didn't need him to feel guilty about this. "I'm fine Dad."

He didn't look reassured, but let me finish my bath. He silently handed me the change of clothes from my pack and after I dressed we headed into camp.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Minato took the still crying Naru to the water's edge. "Sweetie, you need to get clean. 'kay? I'm going to set these clothes on this rock right here for when you're through."

She nodded and when he put her down she instantly stumbled for the water. He turned and gave her some privacy while he thought about how he was going to help her. He hadn't been joking when he told Sakumo his sensei bought him a hooker. Jiraiya had never been very tactful and in his eyes the best medicine for his 13-year-old student was a hooker.

Minato couldn't help but grin though. The hooker turned out to be a good listener and just let him talk to her.

Naru soon came up behind him and touched his hip. "Can I go now?"

Minato nodded and picked her up again. Tonight was going to be one of the hardest things he ever had to do.

Sakumo and Kakashi made it back to the campsite before Naru and Minato did. "Do you want something to eat Kakashi?"

His son shook his head and stared at the stars above. Sakumo stood beside his son in disbelief. The boy wasn't reacting to the killing like he thought he would. He knew Kakashi wasn't a crier, but he figured there would have been something and just vomiting once wasn't the typical reaction for the first kill.

His son's calmness scared him. If his child was taking to killing with no remorse already, then he was on the fast track of becoming just another tool for the village. Sakumo mentally growled; over his dead body would he let that happen.

Minato soon appeared with Naru still in his arms, but clean of any blood.

He nodded to Sakumo and looked sadly at Kakashi before taking her to the tent and placing her inside. "What about watch Sakumo?"

"Tobias and Shiri will be guarding tonight."

He nodded and disappeared into the tent. The sounds of comforting words and soft sobs could be heard from within.

Kakashi stood up and looked into Sakumo's eyes with blank ones. "Can I go to sleep?"

Sakumo nodded and after Kakashi entered the tent he watched the same stars his son did before heading in after him. Kakashi was already lying down and drifting into sleep by the time Sakumo entered the tent. Naru's soft cries were barely heard as Sakumo laid his head down and watched Kakashi sleep.

Was his son already an emotionless killing machine?

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I hid the emotions that welled in my chest. It was a feeling I had known well as an adult, guilt.

Right now it didn't matter that I had memories of killing because those memories felt surreal to me, almost like I was watching a movie inside of my head. The blood that stained my hands and mask minutes earlier were real and the knowledge made me feel it.

I tried to find a comfortable position in my sleeping bag and closed my eyes. Luckily sleep came easily to my weary mind.

 **Dreamscape…**

 **I opened my eyes to see red; the tent was covered in red liquid. I reached out a hand and touched the wetness and froze when I saw it was blood. I instantly reached for a weapon only to find none.**

 **I slowly got out of the tent, noticing that Dad wasn't sleeping beside me. Naru and Minato-sensei were nowhere to be found. I took another step and heard leaves crunch behind me. I whipped around to stare into the rotting face of Haru.**

 **The burns from the conductors stood out red and angry against the pale flesh. His mouth was pulled back in a snarl and he lunged forward. I tried to dodge, but my legs were trapped. I looked down and saw Goro holding onto me with skeletal hands. I frantically looked around to see if there was anything I could use. Then I spotted my Dad walking towards us.**

 **I tried to call out, but my voice was trapped in my throat. Airi appeared to my right side and raked sharp nails down my side. Her face was close to my ear and as she breathed out I could smell death on her breath. My heartbeat increased and I began fighting against my assailants. They let go as soon as my Dad walked into the clearing. I breathed a sigh of relief and walked over to him, but stopped as I noticed he was walking funny.**

 **His body was still covered in darkness, but the closer he got, the more distinguished he became. My heart stopped altogether as he stood fully in front of me with a sliced open stomach. The bloody insides pouring out of an open cavity and his chakra blade clasped in his hand.**

 **Our eyes connected and his legs wavered as he fell forward. In slow motion I watched his body descend on top of my own.**

 **End Dreamscape…..**

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo watched Kakashi sleep and noticed the slight twitches he would make every once in awhile. He was really beginning to worry about his son's sanity. Sakumo reached out and gently grasped his son's arm and the child flinched.

The White Fang stopped and sat up. Kakashi's entire body had broken out in a cold sweat. He wasn't making any noises like someone would if they were having a nightmare, but the cold sweat had Sakumo worried. He knew it would benefit Kakashi more to just let his dream play out, but his "daddy senses" were going off loudly in his ear. Kakashi rolled onto his back and about five minutes later his eyes instantly popped open and he sat up with shaky breathing and a pounding heart.

Sakumo reached out to touch him, but Kakashi knocked his hand away. "I'm fine."

"No you're not. Let me help you Kakashi."

He turned to look at Sakumo. "I'm a ninja and I'm strong enough to handle this. I won't let my emotions get the better of me. I won't be weak."

Sakumo sighed. "Do you honestly think that? No one will call you weak for having a nightmare Kakashi."

Kakashi looked away from his father. "Shinobi rule 25, a ninja must never show emotion."

Sakumo sighed and startled Kakashi by gently lifting the boy to sit in his lap. Kakashi squirmed and tried to get away, but Sakumo held firmly onto him.

"Don't fight me Kakashi. I have a couple of things I need to say and you are going to listen whether you like it or not."

He waited for his son to get settled before speaking. "If a ninja throws away his emotions, then he is nothing more than a tool. Do you think any less of Naru because she is crying?"

Kakashi shook his head. "No, but Naru's different."

"How? You are both children and have both killed for the first time. I see no difference."

Kakashi was silent.

"I don't think you're weak Kakashi. I know you are strong and I know you are talented, but I worry about you. I don't want you to become a mindless killing machine." Kakashi nodded and laid his head against Sakumo's chest. "Now do you want to tell me about the nightmare?"

The boy in his arms shook his head before changing his mind and softly telling him about his dream.

Two victories happened inside that small tent. For Sakumo, it was a victory in keeping his son a child, and for Kakashi, it was a victory in keeping his father with him.

* * *

Naru whimpered against Minato's shoulder. Her tears had subsided and now she was just shaking. "Hey Naru, do you want to talk about it?"

She shook her head. "I just want to forget. He begged Daddy, he begged and I killed him anyway."

Minato rubbed her back. "It was your mission Naru; you were just doing your job."

Naru was quiet once more and Minato hummed underneath his breath as she let her mind wander back to her birthday.

 _Flashback….._

 _October 10th couldn't come soon enough for Naru. It was her seventh birthday and the first one she would celebrate with her extended family. She quickly dressed and made her way downstairs to see what they had planned for her birthday._

 _Sakumo sat at the table watching Kakashi at the stove, making sure the boy didn't burn himself on the hot stove._

 _"Good morning Naru and Happy Birthday."_

 _Naru smiled sweetly before thanking him and walking over to see what Kakashi was making._

 _"Good to see my cooking lessons are paying off scarecrow."_

 _Kakashi glared at her before turning over a piece of bacon. "Bragging gets you nowhere Naru."_

 _She laughed and sat down at the table to wait for breakfast. Meanwhile Minato chose that moment to walk through the door. "Happy birthday Naru!"_

 _She smiled as he walked over and lifted her out of the chair to give her a hug. "Now are you ready for your present?"_

 _Naru giggled before nodding enthusiastically. "Well, you'll have to wait."_

 _That made Kakashi laugh as he plated the sizzling bacon, making sure to keep away from the popping grease._

 _Sakumo's eyes never left Kakashi's form. He still wasn't used to the idea of Kakashi cooking with grease or fire for that matter._

 _After the four finished eating Kakashi held out a dishtowel and smiled at Naru. "We've got to put a blindfold over your eyes so you can't see your present."_

 _She nodded and let Kakashi tie the towel over her eyes. Minato took her hand and led her out of the house with Sakumo and Kakashi following close behind. They walked for what seemed like thirty minutes before stopping and making a left turn. Naru could hear Sakumo and Kakashi still following behind them, but the gentle rustling of a bag told her that they were now carrying something with them. Minato stopped suddenly and she heard the others fall in beside her._

 _"Okay Naru, I'm going to take off the blindfold, but before I do I want you to know I thought long and hard about your gift. Took me days of harassing Kakashi and remembering every single conversation we've had together, but I got it done."_

 _Naru nodded and the blindfold was removed to reveal a long patch of dirt beside her father's house. She looked at him confused. "My birthday present is a patch of dirt beside your house?"_

 _Minato chuckled. "No. Remember what you told me a long time ago? One of your hobbies was gardening and planting, so I pulled a few strings and got you a garden. It's ready for you to plant and make your own."_

 _Naru's eyes brightened and she wrapped her father in a hug. "It's the best present ever! I've always wanted my own garden, thank you!"_

 _Sakumo handed her a bag filled with seed pouches of any kind of flower or plant she would ever want. "I figured you'd enjoy this more than anything else. Happy birthday Naru."_

 _Naru took the bag and hugged her sensei before turning to Kakashi and grabbing his hand. "Come look with me."_

 _The two checked the patch while Naru began planning what she would plant where. Sakumo and Minato watched as she planted the seeds that would hopefully bloom beautifully with time._

 _Later that night Minato took everyone to eat ramen for Naru's birthday._

 _Teuchi smiled as he told the four to get together for a picture. His wife grabbed a camera from behind the counter and snapped the picture, promising to get copies of the picture to the adults. Naru said goodnight to her father, all the while thanking him for her present and went home with the Hatakes._

 _Once everyone settled down for the night in their respective rooms, Kakashi knocked on Naru's door and handed her a cleanly wrapped present before disappearing back into his room. She blinked and opened it to reveal several smoke bombs, specialty exploding tags, chakra strings, flash bangs and a simple note._

 _For your next prank, just promise me I won't be the target._

 _-Kakashi._

 _Naru grinned before returning to her room, this was the best birthday she had ever had._

 _End Flashback….._

Minato continued to hum in her ear; his voice comforting her into a gentle sleep, one he hoped would be dreamless. Naru snuggled closer to him and he watched as fresh tears made their way down her cheeks. With a calloused finger he removed them and continued humming.

He was determined to continue, even if his voice gave out on him because of it. He would continue for his daughter.

* * *

Kakashi's voice continued to tell his father about the bloody nightmare he had experienced, but it wasn't until Sakumo heard his voice get quieter did he realize how much his own appearance in the nightmare had affected Kakashi.

The seven-year-old finished his tale and continued to breathe quietly with his head resting on his father's chest.

"I'm glad you shared that with me Kakashi. I want you to know something though." Kakashi turned to look into his father's eyes. "Having emotions doesn't make you weak. In fact, they make you stronger and more willing to protect your precious people. Do you want to know how I reacted after my first kill?"

"How?"

Sakumo closed his eyes. "I didn't take it as well as you did. It tore me apart and I nearly couldn't complete the rest of my mission because of it. The only thing that kept me going was my sensei. He told me that as ninjas we have to do things we don't always agree with or things that make us feel horrible. But the key to surviving is accepting the fact that you are protecting the village and by protecting the village, you protect your precious people."

Kakashi let the words sink into his brain.

"It's the Will of Fire, Kakashi, and it burns bright in each of us."

Kakashi was quiet and Sakumo understood that his son just needed time to think about what he had said. Sleep would be the best remedy for him. With skilled hands, Sakumo cradled Kakashi against his chest and laid the boy beside him. Kakashi was still small enough to fit in the sleeping bag with his father and didn't complain like he normally would about being treated like a child. Instead he laid his head down and closed his eyes. Sakumo sighed before closing his own eyes and listening to the gentle breathing of his only son.

During the night, Kakashi woke up again from a horrific nightmare, only to be lulled back into the comforts of sleep by his father's comforting form and warmth. Sakumo noticed his son's awakening and gently grasped his son's hand, squeezing slightly just to let the sleeping boy know he was there.

* * *

The next day four figures appeared on the road traveling back to Konoha.

The adults looked tired and heavy with exhaustion, while the kids looked like they had been put through the wringer. The boy's normally alert eyes had bags underneath them, signaling an uneasy night, and the girl's eyes were puffy and bloodshot.

The Chunin at the gate sighed as he watched them walk into the village with their heads high and wondered how many more children would he see leave the gates only to come back as adults.

* * *

 **Note of the releaser** : To that point, we reach the moment where my translation ends


	13. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

* * *

 **Dreamscape...**

 **A small figure walked slowly around a dark house, the smell of blood and gore heavy in the air. The sound of bare feet and the ever haunting drip of liquid hitting wooden floors scared the small figure into immobility. A scream tore down the hall and ghostly figures appeared from nowhere with outstretched skeleton hands, trying to reach the figure and make him pay for what he did to them.**

 **The figure ran, silver bangs whipping in the wind as he raced away from them and into his father's study. Only once the door was closed and locked did the small boy let out a shaky breath, before noticing the smell of blood was heaviest in that room. Heart pounding against his chest he turned a light on, terrified of what he would find. A sigh of relief is heard in the room as the boy notices that the floor is bare. With a calculating step forward the boy walks towards the only window in the room.**

 **A closet door slams open behind him and the temperature in the room drops suddenly. With a choked down whimper the figure stills as a heavy pressure is added to his shoulder.**

 **A voice whispers to him, "Kakashi, don't run from daddy."**

 **Kakashi turns to look into the hollowed out eye sockets of his father before trailing to the weeping wound on his stomach. Sakumo moves closer and Kakashi couldn't help but scream.**

 **End Dreamscape**

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I shot out of bed after what was possibly my third nightmare in four hours.

I tried to control the heavy beating of my heart and the even heavier breathing racking my lungs. I quickly got out of bed and headed down the hall into the bathroom to splash some water on my face. I needed something to bring me back from that nightmare. I had to give my psyche credit though; it was getting more creative, incorporating old memories from ANBU and my father.

I looked into the mirror at the bags underneath my eyes. We had been back from the assassination mission for two whole days and I hadn't slept since then. Minato-sensei had taken Naru to stay with him for a couple of days so he could be there for her. She was still having problems with Haru's death, just like I was still having nightmares. Plus, with Kushina being on a three-month mission Naru could stay with Minato-sensei without questions being raised. I rolled my eyes; Sensei still hadn't told his girlfriend about Naru's parentage.

The nightmares were killing me and I could usually only get an hour of sleep before another round started up. In fact, the last time I had gotten any sleep was the night of the assassination when I slept with Dad.

I chewed on my bottom lip. I really needed to get some sleep or my body was going to shut down, but the only time I could sleep was when my Dad was around. I turned off the light in the bathroom and walked back down the chilly hall before stopping in front of his bedroom door. It wouldn't hurt to ask if I could sleep with him just this once. I really needed the sleep and the bed is big enough for two, so space wouldn't be a problem.

I stepped closer to the door and placed my hand on the knob before rethinking my decision and backing away. I couldn't go crawling in there like a baby; I could handle the nightmares. I walked away from his door before stopping again, the images of my last nightmare dancing across my eyes. I was never going to be able to sleep with those images still in my head. I turned back around and stopped in front of his door once more. He was my father and he wouldn't just turn me away if I went in there.

I lifted my hand to the doorknob before dropping it again, but what if he did turn me away and ridicule me for asking? I just couldn't handle any ridicule from him. I turned around, determined to go back to my room, but my body refused to listen and stood still in the darkness. Dad would never ridicule me for coming to him for comfort and I was ashamed to even think that about him. I took a deep breath and faced the door one more time before reaching for the doorknob, trying to make up a believable story to tell him when the door opened.

My dad stood before me in sweatpants and a long sleeved shirt. It was freezing inside and outside of the house, signaling that winter was going to be brutal this year. He crossed his arms over his chest and leaned against the doorframe before looking at me with a raised eyebrow.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo turned restlessly in his bed. He had been sleeping soundly until he felt Kakashi's chakra flare in the other room, which instantly woke him up. He figured Kakashi had another nightmare and, as much as he wanted to go comfort the boy, knew his son had a proud streak in him that wouldn't agree with his father running in there to check on him.

Sakumo sat up in bed and waited. If Kakashi wanted to talk to him then he would stop by the room, but only then would Sakumo act. He listened carefully to the sound of bare feet hitting the wooden floors and the splashing of water in the bathroom. All was quiet until Kakashi's footsteps restarted down the hall, only to stop in front of Sakumo's closed bedroom door. Sakumo quietly listened to his son's breathing and could practically feel the anxiety in the boy's chakra as he moved towards the door only to move away again.

For ten minutes Sakumo listened to his son pace between the two bedrooms before stopping altogether. Sakumo grinned before taking his cue. He willed his body to get out of the warm bed and placed his feet on the cold floor. A shiver worked its way up his body as he walked to the door and opened it. Kakashi was reaching for the doorknob and was currently looking at Sakumo with surprised and ashamed eyes.

Sakumo took this as a sign that Kakashi's nightmares were getting worse. He leaned against the doorframe, fully aware of the cold wood and looked knowingly at his son.

"You know Kakashi, if you wanted to get a jump start on training for the day that's fine, but you're not getting much done in the hallway. So why don't you come get in bed, because it's cold."

Sakumo watched a blush work its way across Kakashi's face before the boy maneuvered past him and got into the bed, on the warm side Sakumo noticed.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I couldn't keep down the blush that ran across my face; he knew the entire time that I was out here. I walked around his leaning frame and got underneath the covers on his side of the bed, it was the warmest side. I heard him chuckle before pulling the covers off of me.

"Hey, who said you could sleep on this side?"

"It was warm and I was cold."

"Well, you wouldn't have that problem if you would have just come and got into the bed in the first place."

I didn't reply and just snuggled deeper into the warm spot before he chuckled again and lifted me from my spot. I pouted as I faced him. I hated being small. He got into bed and placed me close to his side and then pulled the warm covers over both of us. I snuggled against his body heat and quickly felt the previous chill leave my body. "Thanks Dad."

I sighed contently as he brought a hand up to run his fingers through my hair in a comforting gesture. "Go to sleep Kakashi. I know you've been having really bad nightmares and if sleeping with me makes those go away, then don't hesitate to come. I'm your dad; it's kind of my job."

I nodded and felt my eyes get heavy and before long I was drifting into sleep.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo ran his hand through the soft silver hair that was so much like his own before sighing and wrapping an arm around his son to cradle the boy closer. He knew his son was growing up fast and sometimes Sakumo wondered just how much longer Kakashi would allow him to hold him like this.

With a final look at his only child, Sakumo drifted off into sleep and for the first time in three days Kakashi didn't have a nightmare.

* * *

Minato sighed and wrapped a blanket tighter around his shivering body. The heater was broken in his house and the temperature was steadily dropping. Naru was curled up in his lap, sleeping underneath a nest of blankets and comforters. Minato had gladly given her every single blanket to keep her warm until he finished his mission report and could put both of them to bed. He yawned and signed the bottom of the paper before stacking the loose pages together and putting a weight on top of them so they wouldn't blow away in the night.

Naru squirmed in her sleep as Minato picked her and the blankets up to get into the bed. For the past two days she hadn't left his side as he made sure she was recovering mentally from the mission. Naru had shed a lot of tears and exhausted her small body because of it, but he truly believed she was recovering. Once he placed her in the bed and rearranged the covers so both of them would be warm, he climbed in beside his daughter.

Minato watched her sleep. She looked the most innocent to him whenever she slept and during the day he was amazed by everything she did. Minato guessed that this feeling, this warmth, he felt whenever he looked at her was the same feeling Sakumo described to him after Kakashi was born. The willingness to drop everything and rush to her aid, the desire to wipe all of her tears away, the need to make her smile and the happiness he felt whenever she laughed, Minato realized in that moment he loved her more than anything else in the entire world.

He stroked her cheek, vaguely noticing the whiskers that adorned both, before whispering those words in her ear. "I love you Naru."

Naru snuggled closer to him and in the same whispered voice replied, "I love you too Daddy."

Minato closed his eyes against the whirlwind of emotions that erupted in his chest. He had to tell Kushina about the little blonde haired girl who stole his heart.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I woke up the next morning surprisingly warm and decided that being warm was so much better than the coldness I experienced last night when the heater broke. I looked around and saw Dad snoring into his pillow, hair sticking up in every direction and the covers kicked off of him and onto me.

Chill bumps were racing up his arms from the coolness in the room. I smiled before reaching to find the edge of the covers and placing them over him and snuggling against his side. If we had a mission someone would come get us, but right now sleeping sounded too good of an opportunity to pass up.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I heard Dad groan as a knock sounded throughout the house. I opened my eyes to watch him get out of bed and place the blankets back over me before stretching and walking downstairs. He was gone for a long time before coming and falling back into bed. I couldn't stop the laughter from escaping my lips as I watched his antics.

He propped himself up on one elbow to look at me. "Well Kakashi, that was a messenger. We've got a meeting in an hour."

I blinked at him. "We?"

He nodded his head, "All Jounin and Chunin need to be at this meeting. So we'll see about picking up Naru and Minato on our way to the tower."

I nodded and willed my body to get out of bed and started to get ready for the day. After I finished I headed downstairs where Dad was already dressed and cooking breakfast.

We quickly ate and were heading out the door with thirty minutes to spare.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

Dad poked my side until I woke up. I groaned and looked up into his smiling face.

"We have a meeting in 45 minutes Naru."

I nodded and jumped out of bed to rummage through my bag to find some clothes. I was running out of clean clothes and would have to do laundry soon. After throwing something on and grabbing something to eat we were out the door. Kakashi and Sakumo-sensei were three houses down walking towards us when Dad waved them over.

Together the four of us headed to the Hokage Tower where all of the Chunin and Jounin were gathering.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

The Hokage's eyes swept the large crowd gathering before him, resting briefly on the two small Chunin who just walked in with their respective Senseis before scanning to the Jounin that were staring at the same two Chunin with pity in their eyes. Sarutobi sighed and looked back through his notes for the first of the many meetings he was going to have today. His shinobi were going to have to start mobilizing to fight against Iwa.

His announcement today would be the first full scale mobilization since the Second Great Shinobi War and would officially mark the start of the actual fighting of the Third Shinobi War. Iwa was getting too close to Fire Nation for the Fire Daimyo's liking and only force would drive them away.

The Hokage closed his eyes and thought about the peace that once filled the land. With a heavy heart he wondered if peace would ever enter the land once more. His eyes opened and landed on Kakashi and Naru again and understood; peace would come, but at what cost?

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I yawned as we entered the open room where a majority of the shinobi had gathered. I scanned the crowd before seeing two friendly faces and calling to them. "Genma! Raido!"

It was packed inside the room, but they managed to fight the crowd to greet me back. Kakashi stepped in line beside me. His eyes widened slightly when he saw his old comrades.

"It's been a while. How have you been Naru?"

I smiled at Raido and thought about Airi before swallowing those emotions down. "I'm making it Rai. What about you guys?"

Genma smiled. "Both of our Senseis have been gone on missions, so we've been training together a lot lately."

I nodded. "You should come train with us. Most days our Senseis are gone too and it would be nice to have different sparring partners."

Beside me Kakashi nodded before snorting. "What she really means is we're bored with each other and I don't fall for her traps anymore."

I turned to him and gave a mock face of shock. "You wound me with your lies!"

Genma and Raido laughed before introducing themselves to Kakashi. "I'm Shiranui Genma and this is Namiashi Raido."

Kakashi eye smiled at them. "I'm Hatake Kakashi. Naru told me about you two from the Chunin Exams."

Raido nodded before smiling. "Hatake Kakashi? Hey, you're that kid that graduated from the academy at age five."

A look entered Kakashi's eye. It was a look I was learning very well. Whenever someone would speak to him about his abilities they would always mention his father. Kakashi was stuck in the shadow of the White Fang even though he was an amazing ninja in his own right. If the person mentioned anything along the lines of how lucky he was to have such a famous father, then Kakashi usually blew the person off. Not exactly the best way to make friends, but it worked for him.

Kakashi nodded slowly and Raido continued. "Then we'll definitely train with you guys. It's not every day we get the opportunity to train with a prodigy."

I smiled at the same time as Kakashi smiled behind his mask. They had accepted him for himself and not his father. "Then I guess we'll see you two tomorrow morning at training ground three at eight."

Both Genma and Raido nodded in agreement and the Hokage took that moment to begin the meeting, Kakashi and I fell in beside Genma and Raido in the back with the other Chunin. The Jounin were in the front of us and with my height I couldn't see anything but the back of the man in front of me.

I sighed as I listened to the Hokage talk; this was going to be a long meeting.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I resisted the urge to yawn as the Hokage began speaking, most of what he was saying we already knew except one thing, Konoha forces were going to be deployed within the month and every shinobi would be needed and be required to serve time on the battlefield. I raised an eyebrow and wondered if that meant Naru and I as well.

The Hokage spoke of how important each mission was and how the success or failure of a mission could mean the difference between winning the war and losing the war.

Naru sighed beside me, we couldn't see the Hokage but we could hear the authority in his voice as he told everyone to start preparing to ship out. The first wave would deploy at the end of the week. I blinked in surprise; a week was not a lot of preparation time. I also couldn't help but wonder who was going to be shipped out with the first wave of Shinobi. A small amount of worry entered my chest. Would my dad be sent out this wave?

My attention was brought back to the Hokage as he finished his speech.

"Iwa forces have already invaded Kusagakure and are getting dangerously close to Fire Nation. I'm sending my shinobi out to meet them and take them down. Our numbers may not match theirs, but our determination is stronger. We will fight to the death. I'll send word after the rest of the meetings today as to who will be sent out on the first wave. As far as who's getting deployed, most likely any Jounin with students will remain in the village for now. Likewise Genin will remain in the village."

Rafu raised his hand. "Hokage-sama, is there going to be an age requirement for who can enter the field?"

The Hokage sighed heavily. "I'm not saying yay or nay to that. As much as I wish there to be one, there isn't going to be. We need all the shinobi we can get."

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I looked at Kakashi after the Hokage said this. There was a great possibility we could end up on the battlefield with the first wave of shinobi. He nodded and we both listened as the Hokage wrapped up his speech and dismissed everyone.

We both stood up and were going outside to wait for Dad and Sensei when the Hokage's voice cut through the talking crowd. "Hatake Kakashi and Uzu Naru, I need to see you two."

Kakashi froze as did I and after letting out a breath I followed Kakashi to the front of the room.

The other ninjas parted up the middle, staring at us in fascination as we passed. I don't know whether it was because of our age or if it was because the Hokage called us up there. I heard my dad sigh before asking Sensei a question. "What did they do now?"

I couldn't help but wonder the same thing. Then I saw the singed ribbon on the desk and new exactly what he wanted.

 _Flashback…_

 _Kakashi grinned beneath his mask. "Want to try them out?"_

 _Naru looked at the conductors in his hand before smiling back. "What ya got in mind?"_

 _A twinkle entered Kakashi's eyes, one that Naru recognized from whenever he was planning something big. "Oh you'll see."_

 _Naru automatically decided she liked whatever he was planning because of the gleam in his eyes. Thirty minutes later, while she was setting up the four conductors around a can of cat food, she knew, without a doubt, she loved his idea._

 _"Okay, Tora-chan should be drawn to the scent of this food. It's supposedly her favorite."_

 _Naru nodded towards Kakashi before getting up and backing away from the conductors. "Before she gets here, make sure that it'll only shock her. I'd hate to know what happens if we killed that blasted cat."_

 _Kakashi nodded and shot a small amount of chakra into the conductors. A very light static could be seen. Naru had a clone walk into the perimeter and, after the clone popped, decided it was weak enough to not cause any permanent damage. "Let's get in the trees. I can smell her."_

 _Naru nodded and both of the Chunins sat in the tree overlooking their trap as the cat approached the food. A smile danced across their faces as they thought about all the grief that mangy cat had given them. Payback was a dish best served cold._

 _Naru gave the signal and Kakashi shot the tiniest amount of electricity into the conductor, Tora-chan looked up before noticing the steel balls. Before she could escape they activated and, with a loud screech, Tora-chan flew up into the air. From where Naru was sitting it looked like she landed in the bathhouse._

 _End Flashback…._

I held back my smile, remembering the payback we gave Tora-chan. The blasted cat wasn't hurt from our experiment, but we hadn't seen her in a couple of days. I'm beginning to think she doesn't like us anymore.

"I received a visit from the Fire Daimyo's wife the other day and she brought something very interesting to my attention."

Kakashi took the bait for the both of us. "Really Hokage-sama? What was it?"

The Hokage picked up the singed ribbon and twirled it around his fingers a couple of times. "Well, she wanted to tell me that something unusual happened the other day. Tora-chan came home to her for the first time in years and hasn't left the house since. I find that odd."

I couldn't resist. "You don't think Tora-chan is really an assassin in disguise do you?"

A couple of Jounin still in the room nearly lost it at that comment. The Hokage, on the other hand, was better at controlling his amusement. "After she told me this I wondered for a very long time why Tora-chan would be so clingy all of a sudden. So I requested to check over the cat for her. Want to know what I found?" We both nodded our heads.

"I found a singed ribbon and the strange thing is that Tora-chan's fur was sticking straight off of her body, almost like she had gotten around some bad static electricity."

I resisted the urge to look at Kakashi. "We're in trouble aren't we?"

The Hokage finally laughed. "No, I was going to tell you two congratulations. The Fire Daimyo's wife has never been happier with having Tora-chan back before. She's hoping now they can breed her."

Kakashi's right eye twitched and I mentally agreed. Wasn't one evil cat enough?

"You two can go. I just wanted to see if the two of you actually did it."

We both bowed to the Hokage and without another word took off out of the room.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo just shook his head in disbelief at their tale. "You shocked Tora-chan with electricity and the Fire Daimyo's wife was happy about it?"

Naru nodded. "Yep!"

"I'll never understand women."

Minato was too busy laughing to even comment. Sakumo looked at the scroll in his hand before looking back at Minato. "Hey Minato, can you do me a favor?" Minato controlled his laughter and nodded his head. "Will you go get a mission for me and Naru? I've got to run a scroll to a teammate's house and won't have the time to come back and pick anything up."

Minato nodded. "Yeah, I'll get it when I get mine and Kakashi's mission for today."

After Sakumo and the kids took off, Minato made his way to the mission's desk to look through the C-ranked missions, hoping there would be something interesting.

"Let's see. Escort pregnant lady, no, escort local herb collector, no, another escort for an elderly man, no, escort Iku-hime, oh Hell no, bodyguard?" Minato removed the scroll and began reading before a smile broke out across his face. "Oh yes, payback is sweet!"

Minato hurriedly took that scroll and one of the escort scrolls before leaving and heading to the marketplace. Naru was going to need a new outfit for this mission and he had the perfect one in mind.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

Naru and I stood in front of Dad as he watched our Kenjutsu battle with an interested eye. I pushed chakra into my blade and sliced towards Naru. She immediately blocked, her own chakra pulsing against mine. The colors of the chakras blended together before pushing out and swirling around our blades again.

"Okay stop."

We both pushed off of each other, landing on our feet slightly panting. "I think it's time you two learned some different styles of Kenjutsu."

We nodded, but before he could speak again, Minato-sensei entered the training ground with two scrolls. "I've got the missions for today!"

He smirked as he handed Dad his mission scroll and threw ours to me. I caught it and was opening it when Dad spoke. "Minato, did you read this mission when you accepted it?"

I looked up and saw Dad's horrified look and Sensei's victorious one.

"Yep, it was time to cash in on my threat. I told them I would get them back. The materials needed for this mission are at your house. Don't open it until you get to your destination."

My eyes widened, but before I could speak Sensei grabbed the back of my shirt and Shunshined away.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo sighed as he read the mission report Minato picked out for them. One of the local daimyo's seven-year-old daughter was having a birthday party tomorrow and because of the location of the party Kisho-sama wanted a bodyguard for his daughter and the other guests.

Naru would have to go undercover as a party guest while Sakumo had to go undercover as a friend of Kisho-sama, which wasn't going to be hard for him. Sakumo knew Kisho from when he was younger. There wasn't any real danger to the party guests, but Kisho-sama was an important man and there was always the possibility of Iwa scouts. Sakumo rolled the scroll back up and calculated they would have to leave early the next morning if they wanted to make it on time.

The location of the party wasn't more than a good hour's walk from the village gates, but they would need to get there early so Naru could get dressed and acquainted with Kisho-sama's daughter. Sakumo sighed once more and wondered what kind of dress Minato had picked out for Naru. For some reason he had a very bad feeling about it.

"Let's train some more Naru."

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I looked at Sensei after he had taken me away from Naru and Dad. "What are you doing to Naru, Sensei?"

He smiled at me. "It's a surprise and I hate to ruin surprises!"

I rolled my eyes at him and opened the mission's scroll. "We're escorting a pregnant lady to shop? How does that quality as a C-ranked mission?"

"Don't complain, at least it's not Iku-hime."

My eyes widened and I quickly shut the scroll. "When do we leave?"

He took the scroll from me. "She needs help this afternoon, so let's go now. It shouldn't be that hard to help her shop."

I nodded and followed behind Sensei as we headed to a civilian residential area. Once there, Sensei put on his best smile and knocked on the door. "Hello, I'm Namikaze Minato and this is Hatake Kakashi, we're the shinobi you requested to help with the shopping."

A young woman walked outside, her stomach very heavy with child, with a kind smile on her face. I couldn't help but notice her darker complexion or the fact she looked around before stepping aside and allowing us into the house. "Thank you so much for taking the mission. I feared no one would take my escort request seriously. I'm Kato Ami by the way."

I eye smiled at her as Sensei smiled once more. "Ma'am, if you don't mind me asking, why do you need shinobi to escort you while you shop inside the village?"

I watched as tears welled up in her eyes and she sat down on the worn couch. "I'm sorry, it's just these stupid hormones. I have a very good reason Namikaze-san, for you see I'm not for around here."

I nodded. "It's very noticeable Kato-san, but that's not a reason to need an escort."

She smiled a sad smile. "When I mean is I'm not from around here. I'm from Iwa."

Sensei never dropped his smile, but I could see the realization in his eyes. She was originally from the same place as the enemy. She was looked upon with suspicion and possibly violence and as heavily pregnant as she was that would mean danger for herself and the baby. "Well that's okay. It's not like you're slipping information to Iwa. How long have you been here?"

She rubbed her stomach. "About eight months. I fled from Iwa after I found out about my pregnancy. My husband was a shinobi and he wasn't the kindest of men. I had to get out of there and knew Konoha would be a safe haven for me and my child."

Sensei nodded before holding out a hand to help her up. "Well, let's go get these groceries."

Ami smiled gratefully. "Thank you so much."

She got up and disappeared into one of the back rooms and Sensei grabbed my arm. "Sensei?"

"Kakashi, keep an eye out today. No one will try anything as long as we're close to her. It's a shame though, that girl's done so much for Konoha and the people don't even know it. She's the one who tipped us off about Iwa's plans. That husband of hers should have treated her better."

The grocery shopping actually went okay, not a single act of violence was carried out. There were a couple of shop owners who refused service, but after Minato-sensei finished talking to them they changed their tunes.

A couple of hours later Ami finished putting away her groceries and turned around to smile at us. "I thank you so much. It's not that I believe that someone will hurt me; no it's the fact that I'm defenseless right now. I've had three drunks try to hurt me since I came here and each time a Konoha ninja has saved me. I'm thankful and hopefully one day this horrid war will be over and everything will be better."

Minato-sensei and I smiled at the woman once more before bidding her good night and heading back to our respective homes.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

After we went back to the house, I looked at the bag that held my mission clothes for tomorrow. Sakumo-sensei told me I had to go undercover at a daimyo's daughter's birthday party and that everything was already picked out for me. "Who picked it out?"

He looked away before answering. "Your father." I nodded, I didn't care. "We'll have to leave early Naru, so why don't you go get in bed."

I nodded again before remembering that I left my bag at Dad's house. "Dad has my bag with my clothes."

"Were they all dirty?" I nodded. "Then he can wash them and keep them at his house so you won't have to pack a bag every time you spend the night with him."

I nodded, it sounded like a good idea. He had offered once, so that meant he was going to offer again right? I headed upstairs and smiled when I found Aki sitting in the middle of my floor. I missed her. Gai had kept her for Kakashi during our last mission.

I took a deep breath as those same emotions swirled in my chest and mentally saw Haru and Airi's faces looking up at me from the ground. I took another breath and washed my mind of those thoughts. It'd do me no good to dwell on the mission. They had broken the law and were dealt their punishment. I whimpered and held Aki tightly as I sat on my bed. If I had done the right thing, then why did it feel so wrong?

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I finally made it home after our mission and of course Sensei decided I was to do the mission report for this one. His exact words were, "I'm a Jounin and you're a Chunin. I outrank you, so write." I sighed and closed the front door behind me; it wasn't like I was going to get any sleep anyway.

I hated to say that I feared sleep because Hatake Kakashi didn't fear anything, but I knew I would have an uneasy night. I walked into the kitchen and saw the leftovers from Dad's and Naru's supper before grabbing a plate and eating.

Dad walked into the kitchen and leaned against the counter. "How was your mission?"

"It was an escort mission for Kato Ami."

Dad nodded and grabbed a piece of food from my plate before eating it, "She's the pregnant girl from Iwa right? How's she doing?"

I sighed. "Good I guess. The villagers can be a little cruel because of her home country. They automatically think she's a traitor."

He nodded knowingly. "Well, she's far from a traitor to Konoha."

I nodded in agreement before putting my dishes in the sink. The air was tense around us. Dad looked like he wanted to say something but didn't know how. "Kakashi? Where are you going to sleep tonight?"

I cringed. "I want to try my room again and see if the nightmares won't be as bad."

"Okay, but promise me you'll get me if they get really bad okay?"

I nodded and headed upstairs. Naru's door was closed so I passed by it and headed into my own room to try and lay down.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo sighed as Kakashi left the kitchen. His son was as stubborn as they come. He shook his head and walked the short distance to the cabinet and pulled out an old book. "Let's see, head colds, tooth aches, spider bites, chicken pox, thumb sucking, and here we are, nightmares." Sakumo scanned the book looking for what he needed. "Ahh, here it is. There is no definite cause of nightmares yadda, yadda, can be cause by a traumatic event yadda, yadda, okay possible treatments of nightmares include talking it out, yadda, yadda, and if that doesn't work then chamomile is the best preventative and remedy for nightmares." The sliver haired man snapped the book shut and searched through the herb rack. "Yes, we have a whole jar of chamomile and I can use that to make tea."

Sakumo sighed in relief after the tea was made. Grabbing a mug of the hot nightmare tonic he walked up the stairs to his son's room. He opened the door and peered in at his son who was tossing and turning in his sleep. Kakashi shot up out of bed and began breathing heavily before looking at the opened door. "Dad?"

Sakumo nodded before coming into the room and sitting on the edge of his bed. "Here, drink this. It'll help with your nightmares."

Kakashi nodded and took the steaming mug from his father and tried to drink deeply from the cup. "Don't burn your tongue."

Kakashi snorted into the tea and blew some of the steam off. "It's fine, it doesn't hurt that bad."

Sakumo just smiled and once Kakashi was finished with the mug, he took it and tucked him into bed.

"I can do it."

He smiled softly. "I know, but humor me." Kakashi laid back and let his father take care of him. "Goodnight Ka-chan."

Before long Kakashi drifted off into sleep with the help of the chamomile tea and he didn't have a single nightmare the rest of the night.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

Aki licked my nose to wake me up the next morning. I blinked and looked up at Sensei. He picked Aki up and let her lick his masked cheek. "Time to get up Naru, we've got a little bit of walking ahead of us."

I nodded and after he left the room got dressed. It was still cool outside, so I made sure to have on pants instead of shorts. Kakashi was in the kitchen by the time I came down and he looked like he had actually gotten some sleep last night. I smiled at him and he nodded back. He hardly ever wore his mask inside the house now. Sakumo-sensei picked up the bag that held my clothes and I picked up our bags.

"We'll be back later Kakashi."

He waved after us. "Have fun!"

We arrived in a little town about an hour's walk from Konoha called Kyoto. It was a small trading post that was home to a minor daimyo in the region named Kisho. According to the report, Kisho-sama had married well and his wife bore him a daughter, but before another heir could be produced his wife died of poisoning.

The town was very quaint and small with houses in lines and a town square. The merchants talked with the officials and the officials played pool with the workers. Everything in this town seemed well-balanced and, in a strange way, too good to be true. I sighed as we arrived at our destination and Sakumo-sensei greeted a tall, lean man with light brown hair and dark green eyes. He had a strong jaw with a round nose and high cheek bones. His mouth held signs of laugh lines and his eyes were sharp and intelligent. "Hatake Sakumo, long time no see."

Sensei bowed before laughing. "It has been awhile Kisho."

I raised an eyebrow and followed after those two. "Let me introduce you to my student, Uzu Naru."

I bowed to him and he smiled. "They gave you a student? What were they thinking?" Both men laughed. "Well, the party is in about three hours, so why don't you two go get ready? I'll show you to your quarters."

The house itself was simply amazing. Three stories with white and red trim, a grand staircase that rested right in the middle and, I believe, I just counted the 14th room. "How many people live here Kisho-sama?"

The man smiled at me. "Only a handful. Most of these rooms are used for guests."

I nodded and continued to look around in amazement at the huge rooms with canopy beds and full balconies. "Here we are. Make yourselves comfortable and I'll let you get to work."

Sakumo-sensei nodded and as soon as we were inside he closed the door and headed to the balcony. I followed and peered over the side. "Is that the party area?"

He nodded. "Yeah. While you're taking a bath I'm going to go and scout the area just to be safe. Oh, and before I forget, you don't have to change your name for this mission."

I nodded as he placed his bag on the bed and headed into the bathroom with my bag in hand, which was simply beautiful with a full soaking tub complete with granite floors and countertops. I ran a hand along the side of the tub before turning on the hot water and getting ready to take a quick bath. As much as I wanted to relax, I knew I had a mission to take care of.

I finished fairly quickly, dried my hair and redressed in pants and a shirt. I walked out of the bathroom and saw Sensei standing in front of the bed, blocking my view of what was on the bed. "Sensei, where is my outfit?"

I saw his shoulders tense and slowly he turned around. "Naru, you're not going to be happy about the dress."

I laughed. "It's a dress Sensei, I wasn't going to be happy with it anyway."

He shook his head. "No, that's not what I mean. Minato said to tell you revenge was sweet."

My eyes widened and I walked carefully to the other side of the bed and couldn't believe what I saw. On the bed was the pinkest, frilliest, girlish dress. I almost threw up at all of the ruffles and frills. "What is that? You don't expect me to wear it, do you?"

He sighed and picked the dress up. To my horror it had a matching pair of ruffled bloomers. "I didn't know, Naru, and don't have the time to find you another dress. You'll just have to suffer in this one and honestly it's not that bad."

I died a little inside when I heard that. "But Sensei! It's pink!"

He smiled at me. "No one else will ever know Naru. Just get the mission done and you can destroy the dress later."

I nodded grudgingly and took his advice. "Is that a promise Sensei? Can I really destroy it later?"

He nodded his head and I took the dress from him, holding it only by my fingertips because I didn't want the unholy dress to burn my skin. I headed back into the bathroom and put the pink monstrosity on and, while holding back bile, I slipped on the bloomers.

I hated my father right about now.

I walked outside and Sensei sighed. "It's not bad Naru, just a little too pink." I growled at him. "Okay, okay. Come on, I need to do something to your hair."

I raised an eyebrow. "You're going to fix my hair?"

He snorted. "I'm a ninja Naru and ninjas need skills that are helpful to the mission. All shinobi know basic techniques other than ninja ones just in case we find ourselves in need of something different."

I sat in front of Sensei as he combed through my hair and began curling it. We had decided that curling it would be the best way to go and after he found the curling iron, he went to work. As I sat in front of him in my pink dress and felt the gentle way he was tugging the strands of my hair, a smile graced my face for the first time since seeing my outfit. Kakashi should have been a girl. Sakumo-sensei was too good with girls for him to have a son.

It took an hour to fix my hair and with closed eyes I stood in front of the mirror to see the damage. I opened them and the first thing I saw was Sensei's smile from behind me. I allowed my eyes to travel down and saw my hair. Okay, I'll admit my hair wasn't bad whenever it was curled and I would even dare to call it cute. My shoulder length blonde hair was just enough to give the curls definition without making them look bad.

I nodded in acceptance to Sensei before looking at the dress. My nose scrunched up in disgust, it was still pink and still girly. I sighed in resignation and poked at the puffy sleeves that wouldn't deflate no matter how hard I patted them down before looking at the rest of my outfit. The dress itself stopped at my ankles, but it was a ball gown style bottom and stood out a good foot away from my body. I turned around and cringed at the big pink bow that rested in the middle of my back.

I looked at Sensei and crossed my arms over my ruffle drowned chest. "When we get back to Konoha, I'm killing him."

Sensei nodded. "Want my help?"

I shook my head and laughed. "No, but I need someone to help bury the body."

"Burning works better."

I nodded. "Good idea."

* * *

I sighed and walked into the backyard, which was where the party was being held, and looked around. It had the basic party set up; balloons, cake, candy, streamers and a piñata. I looked around the perimeter of the party zone. We were enclosed by forest and anything that tried to get into the party zone would make a lot of noise coming through the thicket that was just inside the front of the forest. Sakumo-sensei had taken his spot close to Kisho-sama and was talking to him, while keeping a careful eye to those around him.

I sighed once more and headed towards the other kids. Once I was within hearing range they all stopped and stared at me. I put on my best smile and greeted the four boys and five girls. "Hi I'm Naru!"

I heard a voice from the back that said something along the lines of "and we care why?" A girl with a crown upon her head stepped forward. "What kind of name is Naru? Almost like Naruto right? Is that why you smell bad, hmm fishcake?"

I blinked and stepped backwards slightly. Didn't this little girl know who she was messing with? "No, the name's Naru, what is your name?"

She flipped back her brown hair. "I'm the birthday girl, Aiko."

My eyes widened as I looked at the girl in front of me closely, she was wearing a blue dress with lots of ruffles and jewelry. Her face was heart shaped and she had the same high cheek bones as her father. The only difference was where Kisho-sama had kind eyes; Aiko's were beady and almost malicious. Her blue eyes flashed as I looked her up and down.

"Look Naru, it's my birthday and that means what I say goes. Got that?"

I clenched my fist and told myself to refrain from hitting the client, before giving her a smile. "Of course, it is your birthday after all." One of the other girls and one of the boys began laughing loudly and Aiko turn around to find out what was so funny. I rolled my eyes at her turned back and muttered underneath my breath, "spoiled brat."

Her voice floated over to me. "Oh Hiroshi and Anzu, that's too funny! Let's go hit the piñata!"

I sighed and followed after them to the dog shaped party game that was on the other side of the house, away from the adults. Each person got a turn but as it came time for me to try, Aiko declared that she wanted to do it again and I handed her the stick. She busted the thing and looked at me triumphantly. I just stared at her. Did she honestly think not hitting that thing would affect me?

The boy who I had come to know as Hiroshi bumped into me and pushed me to the ground. Of course, I let him. I couldn't blow my cover. He looked at me on the ground and his evil eyes widened with glee. He reached a hand out and traced my cheek. I was officially convinced the boy was crazy. "Aiko, come look at this!"

I looked around wondering what the boy was talking about and why he kept pointing to my face.

Aiko walked over and a look of glee passed over her face. "Well, what do we have here? Whiskers?"

My eyes widened, I had forgotten about them. I opened my mouth and lied my butt off. "It's a birthmark that runs in my family."

Hiroshi smiled. "Does that mean you have dog in your family?" I blinked and shook my head. "Yes it does! Yes it does!"

I bit my tongue and clenched my fists. I couldn't hit them or we would fail the mission.

Aiko stepped forward and smiled maliciously. "I bet her mom was a whore and her dad was a dog. You know that old legend about the dog man? Yeah, that's her daddy."

Okay, I'm not usually one for listening to what people say about me, but now that I had a family it hurt to hear people say stuff like that. I blinked and tried to get up only to be pushed back down by two of the other boys. "No dogs stay on the ground, crawl dog, crawl!"

I rolled over and kicked out, connecting with one of their shins. A grunt of pain rewarded me for my efforts and finally I stood again.

Aiko sneered at me. "I'll bet she's a bastard too, some dog man's illegitimate child."

I stopped, whirling around to tell her off when the adults called us in. They had been on the other side of the house and hadn't seen what they had done. Aiko and her minions took off, leaving me behind to clean myself up and pick up my pride.

Sensei soon appeared outside. "Come on Naru!" I nodded and made sure there were no signs of what happened, before walking towards him. He patted my back. "Only another hour and then you can get out of this dress."

I nodded again and headed to the tables for cake and presents.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I waited 'til it was about 7:30 before heading to the training grounds. Naru and I were supposed to train with Genma and Raido today, but she got a mission so it would just be me. They were already waiting when I got there. "Hey Kakashi."

I nodded towards Raido and Genma. "Naru couldn't make it. She got a mission at the last minute."

Genma nodded and sighed. "You still want to train right?"

"Of course."

We spent the better part of the morning three-way sparring before moving into more complicated training. I honestly couldn't wait for Naru to come back; we were going to have fun with Genma and Raido.

It surprised me actually. I had never been close to either shinobi in the future. Who knows, maybe this was the beginning of a friendship?

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

Finally the party was over. It had been one big blur to me after what happened and I was surprised it flew by so fast. I hurried through the goodbyes and headed up the stairs with Sensei trailing behind. He had been watching me very carefully since the cake was served and I figured he knew something was off. I stormed into the bathroom and began stripping. Soon I heard a knock on the door.

"Naru, is something wrong?"

I shook my head even though I knew he couldn't see. I think I was trying to convince myself that nothing was wrong. "No, I'm fine."

"You don't sound fine. Did something happen?"

I thought back to the taunts and tears welled up in my eyes. "NO! Just drop it!"

I knew my voice had cracked when I yelled, but I didn't care. Sensei sighed before moving away from the door. Once I finally had the dress off, I began looking through the drawers in the bathroom and found a pair of scissors. I hung the horrid dress on the back of the door and began shredding it. Pieces of silk and ruffles came off of the dress like snow falling from the sky. I cut and snipped and tore my anger away and with joy, watched as the dress fell lifeless and beaten to the ground.

Sensei knocked on the door once more. "Naru, come out please."

I quickly pulled some clothes on and stepped over the mess that used to be the dress as I walked out the door.

Sensei kneeled before me and lifted my chin so my eyes would look into his. "Naru, what happened?"

I shook my head. "Can we go home now?"

He nodded and exactly one hour later we were heading out the doors and back to the village.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Minato found Kakashi still training with Genma and Raido around lunch time. He chuckled as he walked into the clearing. "Hey, how long have you guys been here?"

Genma's eyes widened before answering. "Since 8 this morning."

Minato nodded. "Well, you've trained enough for one day. Let's go get lunch."

The boys took off after Minato, a friendship being formed where once there was none.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

After Sensei took us to lunch we made plans to try again with Naru after she returned from her mission. "When are dad and Naru getting back Sensei?"

He smiled. "I don't know, but it should be soon. I'm coming to your house to wait, though. I have to see if my plan worked!"

I sighed and opened the door to the house. "What was your prank?"

His smile widened. "You'll find out when they get back."

I sighed again and sat on the couch with a book while Sensei picked up the mission report I finished before going to bed last night. "You misspelled artichoke."

I glared at him over the edge of my book. "If you're going to criticize my work, then do it yourself next time." He just laughed as he closed the scroll and was moving across the room when the door slammed open and Naru stomped up the stairs. I blinked in surprise. "Naru?"

She didn't answer and soon I heard the slamming of her bedroom door. Dad came in with a worried look on his unmasked face. "What's wrong with Naru, Dad?"

He sighed wearily. "She won't tell me. Everything went well during the mission and there was no trouble. I figured she'd eventually get over having to wear the dress and she did, but something else happened that she refuses to tell me about."

I got off of the couch, headed upstairs and stopped at Naru's door. "Naru can I come in?"

I heard the gentle rustle of clothes as she opened the door. I stared at her and noticed her eyes were red from crying. She pulled me into the room and the door closed slightly. "Naru what's the matter? Was it the prank he played?"

She shook her head. "No, the prank was really good. I'm not mad about that. I mean, he kind of stole your idea and bought me this hideous pink dress to wear and I was ticked at first, but then I realized it was a prank and played along."

I nodded. "So what was the problem?"

Naru got up and began pacing. "When I met those snot-nosed, spoiled brats at the party they were a little mean to me. They called me names and said I smelled bad." I nodded and she continued. "That's not what bothered me Kakashi, it was what they said later about my family that got me."

I instantly knew why she felt so bad; Naru grew up without a family and never experienced the true love of a parent until Iruka came into her life. It was only logical she would react badly to someone making fun of the family she had just received. "What did they say Naru?"

She whimpered. "They noticed my cheeks and asked if I were part dog. Then they called my mom a whore and my dad a dog-man. What got me, though, was when they called me an illegitimate bastard and ordered me to crawl like a dog."

My eyes narrowed.

"You want to know what the worst part is? I couldn't fight back because I had to keep undercover! I could have taken that spoiled princess and showed her exactly what it means to mess with someone you don't know, but I couldn't!"

More tears escaped Naru's eyes and I looked at the floorboards trying to think of something to tell her. I never got my chance though; Sensei came into the room and spoke to her. "Baby, I'm sorry."

I silently backed out of the room and headed downstairs to finish reading my book, Sensei would take care of her.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo watched as Kakashi went up the stairs after Naru. Minato was too busy laughing about the success of his prank to even notice. When he finally pulled himself together Sakumo handed him the bag with the shredded remains of the dress. "She'll never wear it again."

Minato whistled. "She did a number on this thing. Good thing I bought it and didn't rent it."

Sakumo sighed heavily. "You need to go see what's wrong with your daughter, Minato."

He waved the statement off. "She's just a little ticked about the dress."

Sakumo shook his head. "No, it's something else. The entire way home she didn't say a word and earlier she was crying."

Minato blinked in shock before dropping the bag and heading upstairs. He stopped outside the door that was slightly ajar and listened to Naru. "No, the prank was really good. I'm not mad about that. I mean he kind of stole your idea and bought me this hideous pink dress to wear and I was ticked at first, but then I realized it was a prank and played along."

Minato saw Kakashi nod. "So what was the problem?"

Naru got up and began pacing. "When I met those snot-nosed, spoiled brats at the party they were a little mean to me. They called me names and said I smelled bad." Minato growled a little and felt the need to visit a certain spoiled little girl as Naru continued. "That's not what bothered me Kakashi, it was what they said later about my family that got me."

Minato held his breath in anticipation of her next words after Kakashi asked what they said. "They noticed my cheeks and asked if I were part dog. Then they called my mom a whore and my dad a dog-man. What got me though was when they called me an illegitimate bastard and ordered me to crawl like a dog."

Minato saw red. Were children really that cruel nowadays? How could they look at a pretty little girl like Naru and tell her she's an illegitimate bastard with a dog-man for a father? Minato had noticed her whisker marks, but just assumed they were a part of the bloodlimit Sakumo had told him about. "You want to know what the worst part is? I couldn't fight back because I had to keep undercover! I could have taken that spoiled princess and showed her exactly what it means to mess with someone you don't know, but I couldn't!"

Minato couldn't wait anymore. He entered the room and looked at Naru. "Baby, I'm sorry."

She just turned and walked away from him. Minato noticed Kakashi leaving the room. "Naru?"

She shook her head and ignored him. He sighed and walked over to her and picked her up. With his daughter cradled in his arms, he sat on her bed and placed her on his lap. Tightening his arms around her, he tried again. "Naru, please talk to me."

She turned her head away from him. He sighed deeply. "I never expected the prank to go so far. I only wanted to cause you a little discomfort for the day. I would never, ever, intentionally hurt you in any way."

Naru nodded, but still didn't say anything. He sighed again and placed his chin on top of her still curly hair. "Naru, I love you and I hate to see you sad."

Naru finally spoke. "I've never had a full family before. It was just me for a long time after my mom died and now that I have some sense of family back, I don't want to lose it. I know their words were nothing more than hot air, but even hot air can cause burns. It hurt Daddy. It hurt to hear them say stuff like that."

Minato sighed in relief; at least she was talking to him. "It's okay baby, I know. The only thing you need to remember is that I love you and your mother loved you. No matter what label that girl tried to put on you, you will forever be my daughter."

Naru nodded and turned in his lap to hug him tightly. He gently stroked her hair and lay back onto her bed. Hours later, Sakumo quietly opened the door to Naru's room and found a sight worth remembering. Minato had his arms wrapped protectively over the top of his daughter, his feet hung off of the sides of the shorter bed and a pillow had been pushed to the floor.

The White Fang of Konoha smiled before shutting the door; Minato finally understood.

* * *

The next morning a knock sounded throughout the house and Sakumo quickly answered it. An ANBU operative stood at his front door with a summons scroll. Sakumo scanned the scroll and nodded. The Hokage wanted his men to take an S-ranked mission into Iwa controlled territory.

The meeting was set for midnight that night. He dismissed the ANBU and put the scroll on the table and looked at it. His heart pounded against his chest as he thought about the words on the scroll: failure is not an option.

Sakumo shivered. Why did he have such a bad feeling about this mission?


	14. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13  
**

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Rafu paused and looked around the darkened room to make sure he was truly alone before scanning the shelves for the correct mission scroll. It wasn't common knowledge, but all of the S-ranked mission scrolls were kept in a sealed room inside the mission room, right behind the mission's desk. The room was protected with a high level seal and only those who knew the jutsu to deactivate the seal or those with special permission could enter the room. Rafu only knew about it because part of his job was attending to the S-ranked missions for the Hokage. This particular evening though, Rafu did not have the Hokage's permission to be in the room. In fact, what Rafu was doing was not only malicious, but downright evil.

As Rafu searched through the newest scrolls, his mind traveled back to the information he learned earlier by accident; Hatake Sakumo and his team were being given an S-ranked mission to infiltrate and destroy Fort Kei. This really wasn't a surprise to Rafu. Sakumo's specialty was tracking and infiltration, but it gave him an idea, an idea that would destroy the White Fang and everything he had worked for.

Rafu smiled as he found the scroll he was looking for and opened it. He scanned the contents before finding the Hokage's notes and removing them from the scroll. He grinned at the notes and placed them on the shelf before removing another set of notes from his back pocket. These notes were for the infiltration of Fort Rui. Placing those notes into the scroll he snapped it back together and placed it back on the shelf, making sure to remove any trace that he was ever there. Rafu picked up the stolen notes, did another scan to make sure he could escape, and quietly left the room. As he resealed the door, a grin was permanently etched onto his face.

Rafu walked the road to his house and thought over his cleverly laid plan. Fort Kei and Fort Rui were Iwa controlled military forts in Kusagakure that were settled less than a day's journey from each other and had an identical floor plan. In fact, most shinobi referred to them as the Twin Forts, but they were as different as night and day. Fort Kei was heavily guarded and nearly impossible to infiltrate without the proper mission details; those same details that were listed on the Hokage's notes that now resided in Rafu's back pocket. Fort Rui was guarded well, but not nearly as much as Fort Kei and had a different set of mission details, which now were in the wrong scroll.

This little slip of the hands could and would cause Sakumo to fail his mission. Once Rafu unlocked the door to his house, he walked in and instantly went into the living room to read Fort Kei's notes and compare them to the copy of Fort Rui's notes he had taken earlier. He wanted to make sure Sakumo was going to fail his mission.

Everything about the mission details was different from each other. Fort Kei had to be infiltrated on the north side. According to the details that were going to be given to Sakumo, he needed to infiltrate it on the south side, which was the most heavily guarded side at Fort Kei. Fort Kei was 300 shinobi strong, but according to the mission details for Sakumo, there were only 100. Sakumo would read in his mission details that the Iwa shinobi patrolled the area every third day, while the truth was they really patrolled the area every second day. Sakumo would either fail his mission by getting captured or he'd retreat. Either way Hatake Sakumo was going to fall hard.

Rafu smiled again and looked up onto his wall to see his most prized possession, a framed picture of his Nozomi, before she met Hatake Sakumo. He sighed and removed the picture from the wall and traced her face. She was the reason he hated everything that was Hatake Sakumo. Sakumo had taken a sweet, innocent 16 year-old-girl and turned her away from Rafu, away from his love and affections. He could still remember the exact moment when Nozomi was snatched from him by that man, no, that demon.

 _Flashback….._

 _Seventeen-year-old Rafu stood strong in his new Chunin vest, waiting for the love of his life and best friend to meet up with him so they could go get lunch. This day was extra special for Rafu because today was his first day as a Chunin and it would be the day that he confessed his feelings to his black haired friend and secret crush, Sasaki Nozomi. After years of hidden feelings, sideways glances and minor flirting, he would tell her his heart's true desires and she would be his._

 _The sound of running caught his attention and he turned quickly to watch Nozomi run up the road to him. She was simply amazing to him; her black hair flew out behind her while her sea green eyes twinkled with joy. She was so beautiful and it would all be his after today. She made it to his side and was laughing as she skidded to a stop before flashing him a smile, making her eyes twinkle more. "Why who is this handsome man standing where I'm supposed to meet Rafu?"_

 _Rafu smiled before hugging her tightly. "So it looks okay?"_

 _She nodded and brushed off a strand of her hair that got caught on one of the zippers of his vest. "Yes, you look very professional and grownup."_

 _He offered her his arm and together they walked to their favorite diner for lunch._

 _Nozomi looked out the window of the diner with a smile on her face as they ate, completely ignoring Rafu's questions and stories. "Hey 'Zomi, are you listening to me?"_

 _She blinked before blushing. "I'm sorry Rafu; I'm just a little bit distracted. I kind of have a lot on my mind right now."_

 _Rafu nodded in understanding like a good friend would, but deep down he was saddened she would ignore him like that. He reached for her hand and intertwined their fingers. "Ya know you can tell me anything right? I am your best friend, but I wish you would listen to me because I have something I really need to tell you."_

 _She smiled again before taking a deep breath, a heavy blush still on her cheeks. "Rafu, I've met this guy and I really like him."_

 _Rafu felt his heart crack into a million pieces. "What's his name?"_

 _Nozomi laughed. "Hatake Sakumo, and I know I'm going to sound like a silly little girl, but I think I'm falling in love with him."_

 _Rafu's smile turned hollow and his hand went stiff against hers. With every word she broke his heart more._

 _End Flashback…._

After that, Rafu and Nozomi never shared another meal together. His ninja duties kept him away and her feelings toward Sakumo never allowed him to get closer. He never did tell her about his true feelings. Instead he used anger to get even with her. Rafu truly believed Sakumo was the reason his life didn't turn out the way he planned and for that Hatake was going to pay. Rafu had bided his time and finally an opportunity came up to destroy the man. It was just a shame Nozomi wasn't alive for Rafu to steal away to truly make his revenge complete.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I opened my eyes against the bright light flooding into my bedroom. Dad was staring out the window with the curtains pulled back before turning to me and smiling. "It's going to be cold today and even colder tonight."

I yawned and stretched as I got out of bed. My feet hit the cold floor and I quickly jumped back in bed. Dad laughed at me. "I told you it was cold."

I shook my head. "No, you said nothing about the floor being so cold."

He laughed again. "Come on. Naru's cooking breakfast and Minato's still sleeping, so let's go eat before he wakes up and takes all the food."

We went downstairs to find Naru setting the food on the table. "Morning!" I nodded back to her and grabbed a plate. "So Sensei, what are we doing today?"

Dad grabbed a piece of toast and put it on his plate. "We need to take our mission report to the Hokage Tower and I'm going to go check the listings for the deployments this week."

I blinked. "Didn't the Hokage say he would send word?"

Dad nodded. "Yeah, but I just want to be completely sure as to who is being deployed."

Minato-sensei took that exact moment to walk in, yawning and grabbing a glass of orange juice. "Morning."

We greeted him back as Naru quietly asked the question weighing most heavily on both of our minds. "Sensei? What are the chances that Kakashi and I will be deployed?"

Dad sighed and rested his chin on top of his hands. "That's one of the reasons I want to check on the deployment rosters. I'm pretty sure he won't send you two out without me or Minato with you."

She nodded and I turned to look at Sensei. "What are we going to do Sensei?"

He looked thoughtful for a moment before answering. "I need to get my heater fixed so I won't freeze tonight. Unless my dear friend will let me stay here."

Dad stopped eating and rolled his eyes at Minato. "I'm surprised you're even asking, usually you just walk in and make yourself at home. I haven't kicked you out yet, but I'm going to start charging rent because it's costing me a fortune to feed you."

Naru and I laughed as Sensei grumbled. "Okay seriously, I've got to get my heater fixed so we'll work on that today."

I sighed, but agreed it was better than training in the cold weather.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I followed behind Sensei as we headed to the Hokage Tower with the mission report. Everyone in the village was getting ready for the unusual dropping temperatures that came with the months of November and December. Usually it never got terribly cold in Konoha, but this year seemed to be different. I shivered inside my jacket as we headed up the steps of the Hokage Tower and into the warm building.

The mission's room was crowded with shinobi picking up missions and dropping them off, all wearing heavy coats and long pants. I rubbed my hands together and waited patiently as Sensei chatted with the Chunin at the desk before motioning me to follow him. "Yuki-san said the deployment rosters are in the Jounin lounge and has every deployment date for every shinobi."

I nodded and soon found myself in the Jounin lounge, being stared at by the few lingering Jounin in the room. I blinked and gave a small smile to the shinobi closest to me. His eyes widened and he quickly looked away. I raised an eyebrow at the man's oddness and stood beside Sensei as his eyes searched for our names.

He sighed heavily. "You and Kakashi are being deployed together in three months underneath my leadership. Minato's is also being deployed in three months in our company, but with a different squad."

I nodded and stood on my toes to read over the list when a voice startled me from behind. "How can you expect her to go on the battlefield when she can't even reach the list that tells her deployment date?"

I blinked and turned around to see Rafu-sensei. I knew that Sakumo-sensei and him didn't get along at all, but I wasn't sure why.

"Rafu, her size has nothing to do with her skill. I think we've been over this before, so why am I repeating myself?"

I watched as Rafu snarled at Sensei. "The Jounin were right in their vote Sakumo, she shouldn't have become a Chunin at this age."

I blinked a couple of times to make sure I heard him right. "Excuse me? Sensei, what is he talking about?"

Sakumo-sensei sighed in resignation. "The Jounin voted 'no' to your promotion during the Chunin Exams and it was supposed to be kept secret but apparently some people don't listen to the rules."

Rafu chuckled darkly. "What's the worst that could happen because she knows about the Jounin vote? She's only a little girl and couldn't harm a fly."

My eyes flashed dangerously and Sakumo-sensei noticed them before smirking. "You should stop while you're ahead."

Mockingly Rafu whimpered. "Yes I'm terrified about what sweetheart here can do to me."

I took a deep breath and touched Sensei's arm. He nodded, understanding that I wanted to leave before I said something to him. "Well, Rafu we'll hopefully not be seeing you later."

I kept my eyes straight forward as I thought about the Jounin vote. They had just gotten themselves put on my prank list. All I needed to do now was get them at their weakest moment and attack.

I smiled; I would need Kakashi's help with this one.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I laughed as Sensei nursed his sore thumb. "I think you were supposed to hit the metal instead of your thumb."

He glared at me and tried to smack me in the back of the head. "Not funny 'kashi."

I laughed again and picked up the discarded hammer. Sensei had tried to fix the heater but we quickly discovered that it was harder than it looked. "I think you're going to need a repairman, Sensei."

He shook his head. "That costs money and I can do the same job with tape and a couple of nails."

I looked at the abused heater. "I don't think you're fixing it. I think you're making it worse."

He sighed in frustration and prodded a metal wire with the hammer, it sizzled before smoking. "Yep, that's my cue to stop. When things start smoking it's time to stop."

I laughed again and he backed away from the heater. "Want me to get a repairman?"

Sensei sighed again resignedly. "Yeah get a repairman. Oh wait! Go next door; my neighbor is a retired repairman."

I nodded and headed to his neighbor's house. I shivered as the wind whipped around my masked face and seeped into my bones. It was going to be bad tonight. The temperature was supposed to drop to almost below freezing. I sighed, could the weather be forecasting bad news for Konoha?

I talked Sensei's neighbor into getting out into the cold and seeing about the heater. He took one look at it, poked it and turned back to Sensei. "Well it's broken."

Sensei's eye twitched. "I knew that. Can you fix it?"

The man shook his head. "Not today, don't have the parts and I have somewhere to be in thirty minutes. I can stop by tomorrow if you want."

Sensei sighed. "That's fine and thanks," he escorted the man to the front door and bid him goodbye, "for nothing."

I smirked at him. "Want me to get your bag?"

He glared. "Cheeky little brat aren't you?"

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I watched with apprehension as the grey clouds swirled overhead and the wind bent the limbs of the trees. The weather was beginning to bother me. I was never a huge fan of storms and I especially hated anything related to snow or coldness.

Sakumo-sensei was also watching the swirling clouds. "Let's get home before it gets colder or starts storming."

I nodded and walked a little faster; the sooner we were in the house, the sooner I would settle down.

When we were in the front yard Sensei laughed. "I guess he couldn't get his heater fixed."

I blinked before sensing the chakra inside the house and running up the steps. "Daddy?"

Kakashi was sitting on the floor with Aki in his lap, "Minato-sensei's upstairs taking a nap."

I sighed and placed my coat on the hook along the wall.

Sakumo-sensei walked in after me. "Did you guys fix the heater?"

Kakashi snorted which Aki copied with her own bark. "He hit it with a hammer a couple of times before it started smoking, then I had to go get his neighbor to look at it long enough to tell him it was broken."

Sakumo-sensei nodded. "Sounds about right. Well since it's supposed to be cold tonight I'm going to get some extra blankets and comforters."

I walked over to Kakashi and sat down beside him, taking Aki into my lap. He looked at me and smiled at the expression on my face. "You found out something today that you didn't like very well."

I nodded. "The Jounin voted 'no' for my Chunin promotion."

Kakashi blinked in surprise. "Really? Why?"

"I don't know. I think they deserve to be taught a lesson about underestimating someone smaller than them." Aki nipped my wrist with her teeth.

"Is this going to be individual or a group thing?"

I smiled at him. "You know me well enough by now Scarecrow to know the answer to your question."

He nodded. "Group it is. So we have to get them all together, so maybe at a Jounin meeting?"

I nodded. "Now we just need something original and creative."

"I'm sure something will come to you. Hey, maybe you can get the ANBU back for that S-ranked genjutsu too."

I smiled brightly at him. I knew there was a reason I was friends with him. "Brilliant idea, but this is going to call for some serious planning."

The shinobi of Konoha had no idea what was coming to them and that was an exciting thought for us.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo walked upstairs into his bedroom with a heavy mind, his thoughts swirling worse than the grey clouds outside. Rafu would be the death of him. He had no right to mention the Jounin vote to Naru and because of his loose lips she knew about the secret vote. Sakumo sighed. There was no telling what she was going to do now that she knew and Rafu was just asking for trouble from the girl. Honestly, what was he thinking teasing the number one prankster of Konoha, as Sakumo affectionately liked to call Naru? Rafu really was just asking for it from the girl.

The White Fang shook his head to clear his thoughts and went back to the task at hand. He needed to find blankets because it was going to get cold. The weather was another thing that bothered Sakumo. Konoha almost never got this cold this fast and he couldn't help but wonder if it was an omen of things to come. He had tried his hardest to fight down the bad feeling he got whenever he thought about the S-ranked mission he had tonight.

Clearing his head, he reached up into the closet and took four thick blankets out before setting them on the floor and reaching to the very back of the closet to see if he missed anything. His wandering hand touched something soft and heavy, something he hadn't seen or felt in almost five years. He reached further back and grasped the cloth securely before removing it from the top of the closet.

A beautiful quilt rested in Sakumo's hands. He smiled gently as he sat on the bed and ran his hands over the soft fabric before unfolding it. A kaleidoscope of colors greeted Sakumo, who was surprised that it hadn't faded over time, before leading his eyes to the other parts of the quilt. In the dead center of the quilt was a whirlwind of colors ranging from yellow to red and spanning out to the green edges of the quilt. If you looked hard enough you would see Konoha's emblem in the middle of the whirlwind, proudly standing strong against the forces. The patches around the whirlwind of colors each bore a different constellation, with Orion the hunter and Canis Major being the most prominent of the constellations.

Sakumo ran his hands over the quilt once more before closing his eyes and letting the memories take him back.

 _Flashback….._

 _Gentle rocking could be heard throughout the dimly lit house as Sakumo walked in from his latest mission._

 _He had been gone for two weeks and dearly missed his young wife and newborn son. The October weather had turned chilly and as Sakumo locked the door, grateful for the warmth of the house. He dropped off his heavy bag by the door and walked up the stairs, following the sound of soft singing and gentle breathing before stopping at the nursery to watch his wife rock the baby._

 _Nozomi stopped singing, much to the displeasure of the child in her arms, and smiled at her tired husband. "Welcome home."_

 _He smiled back at her and walked into the room but stopped, chuckling at the quilt wrapped snuggly around both Kakashi and Nozomi. "Cold?"_

 _She giggled, which caused Kakashi to shift in her arms. "You weren't here to keep us warm so I had to improvise."_

 _Sakumo walked closer and squatted beside his family. "I'm here now."_

 _She removed her hand from the quilt and stroked his unmasked cheek. "I missed you; we both did."_

 _Sakumo leaned in and kissed her lips gently, making sure to not squish Kakashi before smiling against those soft lips. "I missed you more."_

 _End Flashback…_

The quilt in Sakumo's hands had been his wife's favorite quilt and many a night he would come in from missions and find her wrapped up in it with little Kakashi sleeping in her arms. Then as Kakashi got older, Sakumo would find them both sleeping on the couch underneath the quilt. The White Fang folded the quilt up and placed it on top of the other blankets, his mind still replaying memories from his time with Nozomi.

After her death, he had forgotten about the colorful quilt that used to be such a major part of the winter routine for his family, but now after finding the treasure again he wanted to make sure it wasn't forgotten. Sakumo smiled as he walked into Kakashi's room and placed the quilt on his son's bed. Nozomi would have wanted him to have it. He walked out of the room with the remaining blankets and into the room Minato was sleeping in until his heater was fixed.

The upstairs level had four bedrooms and two bathrooms, so Sakumo didn't mind extra guests because the house had plenty of room, including two more bedrooms on the first floor. Well, actually only one bedroom, the second downstairs bedroom had been turned into his study. There was also an attic, but Sakumo hadn't been up there since Kakashi was two.

Sakumo snorted as he watched Minato sleep before throwing a blanket over his head, the man automatically began fighting back against the blanket. "Don't kill the blanket, Minato, or you'll freeze tonight."

Minato fought his way from underneath his dark blue attacker and glared at Sakumo. "Geez, can't a guy get some sleep around here?"

"I heard about your attempts to fix the heater. Did you really hit it with a hammer until it smoked?"

Minato rolled his eyes as he got out of the bed. "One day your son will come home to you missing his tongue."

Sakumo laughed. "You wouldn't do that to your favorite student."

Minato grumbled as he left the room. "Only student, Sakumo, only student. There's a difference between favorite and only."

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

Dad was right, as the sun went down it got cold really fast. The heater in the house was keeping us warm, but it was still cold. Naru was sitting comfortably in Minato-sensei's lap, making fun of his heater experience and I was sitting in Dad's chair with Aki curled up beside me. Every so often she would snuggle closer to me and I would pet her.

Dad came into the room carrying a steaming mug before standing beside me and pushing me out of his chair. I glared at him playfully as he picked up Aki and sat down, letting Aki sit in his lap. "You could have sat on the couch."

He chuckled. "I could have, but I didn't." He held out the mug to me, "Want a drink? It'll warm you up."

I sniffed the contents and smelt the sweet scent of chocolate before scrunching up my nose in disgust. "No thanks."

He smiled before pointing with his empty hand. "Didn't figure you would want some, but I did make you some tea. It's in the kitchen."

Minato-sensei raised an eyebrow at Dad. "You made hot chocolate and didn't bring us any?"

"No, I made you some, it's in the kitchen."

Naru had already gotten out of his lap and was heading into the kitchen to get hers as Sensei stood up. "Why didn't you bring it to us?"

I watched as Dad drank from his mug before replying. "Last time I checked, I was not your maid. You've got two healthy legs, use them."

I laughed and walked into the kitchen to get my tea. I had never been fond of anything sweet. Just couldn't stand the taste or smell and Dad, having the sweet tooth he did, always kept sweets in the house. I remembered him trying when I was younger to give me sweets, but the only thing I could stomach was certain flavors of dango. So he would go out of his way to prepare things I would like while he had his sweets.

I picked up my tea, which from the smell I could tell had just a hint of chamomile. Naru grabbed her mug and Minato-sensei walked into the kitchen and grabbed the other one. He chuckled before ruffling my hair and walking back into the living room. Naru and I followed him and plopped down onto the couch.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo sat down his steaming mug and cleared his throat. "Naru and I went to the Hokage Tower today because I wanted to see the deployment dates and it looks like we all are getting deployed in three months."

Minato sat up straighter at those words. "Three months? That's sooner than I thought we would be deployed. Who are the kids getting?"

Kakashi turned his attention to Sakumo to hear the answer. "I've got those two plus a couple others. I have a feeling that you're going to be doing more individual work because of the squad they put you in charge of."

"They didn't split us up Dad?"

Sakumo shook his head at Kakashi. "No, and why I don't know. I'm not going to complain about it. I'd rather you two be near me or Minato than with anyone else."

Kakashi nodded and Naru chewed on her bottom lip. "Sensei, the deployment means that we'll be in battles right?"

Minato beat Sakumo to the answer. "It's a possibility, but don't worry, someone will always be watching your back. We're not going to let anything happen to you."

Sakumo looked at the clock and saw it was getting closer to midnight. A chill ran the length of his spine as the extreme feeling of foreboding returned. He stifled that emotion and finished the rest of his hot chocolate before suggesting they call it a night. No one complained, hoping to seek warmth from their dreams.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I hurried up the stairs and noticed the difference in temperature before going into my room. Kakashi stopped by long enough to tell me he would think about the perfect payback for the Jounin and ANBU. I winked at him. "They'll think twice before pulling something like this again."

He laughed before going to his room and leaving me sitting on my bed. I sighed and rested my head against the wall. We had to show the older shinobi that we could hold our own or they would never let us do our jobs. I was confident we could show them with a couple of perfectly laid traps. I mean, come on, how embarrassing would it be for the older shinobi if we could pull off a prank that got all of them? They would have no choice but to recognize our potential.

A knock sounded on the door and Dad walked in. "Daddy?"

He smiled before walking over and running a hand through my hair. "I'm here to tuck you in. It's going to get colder and I want to make sure that you'll be warm."

I smiled warmly and got underneath the covers as he pulled them up to my chin and stroked my hair one more time. "Sleep tight sweetie."

I sighed and snuggled deeper into the warmth. Having a father was exactly like I imagined it would be, warm and safe.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I walked into my room and blinked at the quilt that was placed on my bed. I would be lying if I said it didn't look familiar, but I couldn't exactly place where I had seen it before. I walked over and picked the quilt up and traced the designs that were painstakingly sewn into the fabric.

"It was your mother's."

I turned around to see Dad standing in the doorway with a faraway look in his eye and couldn't find any words to say to him. He walked in, closing the door behind him before speaking again.

"Your great-grandmother made it for her sixteenth birthday and she loved it from the first moment she saw it. Whenever I would come back from a mission I would find her in the living room curled up underneath this quilt, waiting for me to return. Then after you got here, she would wrap the two of you up in the quilt and rock you to sleep. As you got older, I would come in from missions and find both of you sleeping on the couch underneath that same quilt."

Dad reached for the quilt and smiled as he held it in his arms. "You use to love to play underneath this thing with her and no matter how tired she was, she would get on the floor and play with you."

I stood silent, thinking over the newest information my Dad had given me. I hardly knew the woman that had given birth to me. Before Dad died he never spoke of her and afterwards I was too concerned about the rules to care. I always just assumed it was too painful for him and I was thankful that this time around he was taking the time to let me get to know her. "What was she like?"

Dad blinked at my question before smiling. "Get in bed and I'll tell you about her."

I climbed in the bed and got underneath the covers as Dad spread the quilt over me. "She was hardheaded, nosy and had the most gorgeous green eyes that I had ever seen. She couldn't cook anything on top of the stove without burning it, but she was an amazing baker. She made the best chocolate chip cookies I had ever tasted and she had this secret recipe for white chocolate brownies that she would never let me see. Told me it was a family secret and hid it from me. To this day I still can't find it."

I laughed. "You only loved her for her cookies."

His rough finger playfully poked my nose. "No, I dated her for the cookies. I loved her for the brownies."

It was nice to be this easy going with my Dad and be able to talk about my Mom. I was hoping it would be a nice way to keep the guilt away later. I knew the mission was coming up soon, I just didn't know when and I was determined to do anything to keep him with me.

"She loved to read, so I would bring her back books from other villages whenever I came home from missions. In fact, while she was pregnant with you she would read out loud a page a day from this old book of fairy tales just so you could get used to her voice. Something about babies being able to hear and I would laugh at her before reading a paragraph with her."

I tried not to yawn but the warmth of the blankets and the gentle tone of his voice soon had my eyelids growing heavy. I heard the bed shift as he got up and kissed my forehead before whispering in my ear. "The quilt is yours now. Your Mom would have wanted you to have it. It'll never replace the warmth of her arms but it's the closet thing I can give you."

He stroked my hair once more before leaving the room and I drifted into comforting dreams. Ones filled with a smiling black haired woman that always had time to play.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo closed his son's door and sighed before heading to his room. "Sakumo."

He quickly turned around and saw Minato sticking his head out of the guest room. "Yeah?"

"I saw the summons scroll and just wanted to wish you good luck. I'm assuming you're not going to be here in the morning?"

Sakumo nodded his head. "No, we're leaving tonight. I didn't tell the kids because I didn't want them to worry, especially Kakashi. It seems like he gets anxious whenever I mention I'm going on long missions, almost like he's waiting for something bad to happen."

Minato waved it off. "He's just worried. The kid finally started acting like a kid, so I'm sure he's just showing his age and worrying about you being gone."

Sakumo nodded. "Yeah, I'm sure you're right. Are you going to train them tomorrow?"

He nodded. "Yeah and I think I'm inviting those two boys, Genma and Raido. Kakashi actually gets along with them."

Sakumo snorted. "You mean they actually get along with him."

Minato began closing his bedroom door. "It's not my fault your kid is picky."

Sakumo laughed before going into his room and looking at the clock, 11:00. He had just enough time to get a bag together and head to the Hokage Tower.

* * *

Four men stood at attention in front of the Hokage. Each wore an expression of intense concentration as the Hokage described their mission.

The first man was none other than Hatake Sakumo, captain of the team and lead tracker.

The second man was Inuzuka Jiro; his features and skills were typical of his clan. He was the power of the team. His brown hair spiked wildly in every direction, a feral look in his dark eyes and the sharpened canines only added to his features.

The third man was Soto Ronin, born of a civilian family but with one of the keenest set of eyes around and a mind made for strategy. His dirty blonde hair was tied back into a high pony tail and honey brown eyes stared intently at the Hokage, hanging on every word the man said. A scar ran down the left side of the man's face, ending at his chin and beginning at his cheekbone that was enhanced in the darkened light of the office.

The fourth and final man was silent and patiently waiting for the start of the mission. He was Suzuki Ryozo the team's demolition expert. His short black hair and deep blue eyes gave him an aura of safety to those he came into contact with, unless that person was on the receiving end of one of his specialized exploding tags.

"You're mission is to infiltrate Fort Kei. All the information you need is in the mission details I have written out for you. This mission must be a success, failure is not an option. Konoha's victory in this war depends on the success of this mission and if you fail, then all of Konoha fails."

The four men nodded and saluted their Hokage. "Leave immediately, dismissed!"

The Hokage handed the mission scroll to Sakumo, who took it and placed it in his pack before giving the order to his men to move out. They were out of Konoha and heading toward Kusagakure before the clocks in the village struck 12:30.

Across the village, in a house settled away from the bustle of village life, a young silver haired boy woke up from a dream turned nightmare. The lingering statement in the young boy's exhausted mind caused him great confusion as he laid back to try and sleep.

On the other side of the village a grown man watches the disappearing bodies of the four men from his bedroom window with a smile plastered on his face and a glass raised toward a picture on the wall. "My dear, this is the beginning of the end for the Hatake Family."

The winds outside picked up and followed behind Sakumo's team as if trying to warn them of the danger ahead.


	15. Oneshot 1

**Oneshot 1**

* * *

 **(One-shot)**

Sakumo willed his tired and aching muscles to carry him up the last few steps and into his house. The chilly evening air was still and smelled faintly of cinnamon and nutmeg as he stood on the last step and looked at his front door with joy. All he needed to do was walk three steps forward, turn the doorknob and he would be home; he would be free to leave the hellish mission behind and just unwind.

His sandals echoed dully off of the wood of the front porch and sounded loud and foreign in his ear. His body was caked with mud and knew he had a nasty cut running the length of his arm, but all of that would change once he made it inside the house. His tanto hung loosely from his right hand and he was favoring his left leg slightly as he walked those last three steps. A weary hand lifted, enclosed around the cool metal doorknob and, with a flick of the wrist, Sakumo opened the door and let the warmth of his home warm his freezing body.

The White Fang of Konoha entered and shut the door behind him, smiling at the familiar sight of a lumpy mass on the couch underneath a colorful quilt. Still favoring his left leg he limped forward until he could touch the heavy material of the quilt and hear the childish giggle of his young son. "I wonder where Mama and Kakashi are?"

He heard the gentle shushing of his wife to their giggling one-year-old before he lifted the corner of the quilt. "There's my scarecrow!"

Little Kakashi's dark eyes sparkled as he tried to dive back underneath the cover and hide from his father. Sakumo laughed as he began tickling his baby before kissing his wife firmly on the lips, her own green eyes twinkling with happiness before scrunching up her nose. "You need a bath."

Sakumo laughed before agreeing and limping the rest of the way upstairs and into the bathroom, where he spent the next thirty minutes removing every trace of the mission from Hell.

Freshly showered and clean as a whistle, Sakumo's aching muscles sighed in relief as he began making his way towards his bedroom. Nozomi had alredy made her way there and was sitting on the bed with Kakashi squirming beside her. The boy noticed his father first and held out his arms to him. "Daddy!"

Sakumo smiled before entering the room and sitting on the edge of the bed to lift his son into his arms. "Daddy missed you."

Kakashi just babbled excitedly to his father while tugging on the dog tags that hung around his father's neck. Nozomi smiled sweetly before stroking the soft silver hair of her son. "We missed you too."

With his free hand, Sakumo reached for Nozomi's chin and brought her closer to him. With a wink of her green eyes she closed the gap and kissed him deeply. Sakumo kissed back with just as much love and passion, the child in his lap completely forgotten about, until said child cried out for the attention he wasn't getting from his parents. "Daddy! Look!"

Sakumo pulled away from Nozomi and gave her a wink before turning his attention to the one-year-old in his lap by tickling him along his ribcage. The cozy bedroom was soon filled with the high pitched giggles of Kakashi, the deep and playful chuckles of Sakumo and the light laughter of Nozomi as she joined her husband in tickling their baby.

The weariness in Sakumo's body returned by the end of the tickle match and little Kakashi's eyes began to get heavy with sleep. Nozomi cradled him to her chest and gently rocked back and forth to help ease the one-year-old into a deep sleep. As the child slumbered in his mother's arms, Sakumo reached for him and instead of placing him in the nursery, Sakumo placed the sleeping child in-between them.

Kakashi woke slightly from the loss of warmth and rocking, but as Sakumo began patting his back in a gentle rhythm, he soon drifted back into the world of dreams. Nozomi turned out the light and got underneath the covers, making sure to spread the quilt over the top layer of blankets to add extra warmth, before snuggling beside her son and husband. A smile graced her face as she watched Kakashi take deep even breaths; he reminded her of Sakumo so much. Sakumo lay down and turned to face her. Reaching over the sleeping form of his son he grabbed his wife's hand and, after giving it a small squeeze, wished her sweet dreams. With a slight tease in her whispered voice she answered him. "My dreams are always sweet whenever you're here."

He chuckled quietly. "As sweet as those white chocolate brownies?"

She giggled. "Even sweeter than those."

As the cold wind blew outside the house, all those inside slept in warm comfort, surrounded by the bond of love.

A bond that took physical form in the shape of a silver haired baby that slept soundly between the warm bodies of his parents.


	16. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14**

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

It was amazing how alive a person could feel flying though the tree branches at top speed knowing they were heading straight into the mission of a lifetime. Sakumo had never felt more alive than he had at that moment with the stars twinkling above, the wind at his back, and his mission ahead of him. His team was spread out behind him, Ronin bringing up the back with Jiro and Ryozo at the flanks, moving silently through the trees like the deadly predators they were. Tobias and Shiri were also out and about in the forest, keeping all their senses open just in case they ran into something unexpected.

They had been traveling for two days with little rest, but the adrenaline pumping through their bodies didn't allow them to feel the exhaustion. Their bodies were sculpted and conditioned to handle conditions such as the ones they were traveling in. Years of hard training were paying off as they jumped from branch to branch. Each member of the team knew how important this mission was and how badly they needed to complete the mission successfully. Sakumo intended to do just that. He motioned for his team to speed up and they complied, the only sound heard was a soft chuckle from Ronin in the back. They all knew what their captain was thinking, the closer they got to Fort Kei, the closer they were to completing the mission and going home.

They made sure to keep their awareness almost painfully sharp. Even the tiniest moment of unawareness could cost them the mission or a life. Sakumo sighed before scanning the forest in front of him, they were about five miles from Fort Kei and needed to set up camp so they could plan and get some much needed rest. They would execute their plan only after careful planning and spying. A good ninja could never be too careful and the extra surveillance would keep them from being surprised by anything unexpected. He raised a hand and landed on his feet onto the forest floor, there would be no fire tonight except the ones that burned deep within the men's souls and eyes. Sakumo just wished he could extinguish the knotted feeling in his stomach. He had such a bad feeling about this mission.

Ronin landed beside him while Jiro and Ryozo landed to his left. In quiet whispers Ronin asked his captain what the plan of action was. "Taichou? Where do we go from here?"

Sakumo turned to look at the man before taking his pack off of his back and placing it on the ground. "Let's set up camp first. This area is covered with trees and underbrush, so we should be hidden from view."

The men nodded and they all got together to make a crude and uncomfortable campsite. They were not given the luxury of tents or sleeping bags for this mission because of the high level of danger they were facing. The skilled shinobi needed to be able to see all around them and not be restricted in their movements in the event of an enemy ninja locating and attacking them. Shiri and Tobias entered the covered clearing and sat beside their master's feet while waiting for their next orders. Sakumo reached down and patted the tops of their head before telling them to rest; he would need them later.

Once the crude camp, consisting of backpacks used as pillows, was set up, all four men sat together to plan out their mission. Sakumo removed the mission scroll from his pack and spread the scroll out to look at the contents of the mission. As the team looked at the map they all came to the same conclusion, Fort Kei was intricate, consisting of various fortified walls and many tunnels. Ryozo raised an eyebrow at the detailed map before running a finger down one of the tunnel lines. "Now won't this be fun."

Sakumo silently agreed before looking into each of their eyes. "Let's get started."

Sakumo began removing papers from the scroll and laid them in front of his team before searching for the most important papers in the entire scroll, the mission details. He found the paper and scanned it before relaying the information to his team. "Fort Kei, home to 100 enemy shinobi, needs to be infiltrated on south side and make sure to watch for the patrols every third day. They cover a five mile radius around the fort."

Jiro nodded. "So our camp is within their radius, we'll have to move around every third day."

Ryozo nodded. "That and make sure we don't leave any trace of us here. Any little thing could tip them off."

Sakumo agreed with his subordinates. "We need to get the first look over with tonight. Ronin, can you and Jiro get close enough tonight to stake the fort out?"

Ronin smiled and looked at Jiro before nodding. "We might even get close enough to tell you what they're cooking for supper."

Sakumo let a small smile grace his masked face. "Just go you two and be back before morning. We don't know the patrols yet." The two shinobi nodded and silently disappeared into the trees.

Sakumo looked at Ryozo and began picking up the contents of the mission scroll. "We are going to see if we can find any signs of patrol."

Ryozo nodded and the two shinobi took the four packs and gave them to Tobias and Shiri, leaving them with the instructions to keep hidden until they returned. The two shinobi took to the trees and began their search. Sakumo's eyes scanned the forest floor in the hopes of finding some type of track or disturbance. When he found none, he began searching the tree branches to see if there was any unnatural breaks or possibly a footprint. Again, he came up with nothing. He looked towards Ryozo to see if he had found anything. Ryozo just shook his head at the unasked question and continued scanning the forest.

Sakumo stopped their trek further into the forest with a raised hand. He could barely feel the smallest spike of foreign chakra. Ryozo's eyes snapped wide as he felt it too and quickly climbed further up the tree with Sakumo, where they would have better coverage. Sakumo held his breath as he pressed his back firmly against the tree and covered his chakra as an Iwa ninja landed on the same branch they had been standing on just minutes before. The limbs in the higher levels of the tree were so thick that it was nearly impossible to see through. Sakumo could barely hear Ryozo's breathing as they waited for the danger to pass. The Iwa ninja stood still and scanned the trees, his eyes briefly resting near the spot Sakumo occupied, before rubbing his eyes and murmuring to himself about how tired he was.

The ninja left and Sakumo sighed in relief. Ryozo smiled and signed quietly to Sakumo, **we now know patrol**.

Sakumo nodded and signed back, **too close though. Wait then return to camp.**

While Sakumo and Ryozo stood quietly against the trunk of their hiding place, Jiro and Ronin inched their way closer to Fort Kei. Ronin's honey brown eyes searched for any sign of another presence before motioning for Jiro to follow after him. From their current position overlooking Fort Kei, they could see the horrid fort in its entirety. The two shinobi had luckily spotted a hill that overlooked the fort that gave exceptional coverage while still allowing them to do their jobs.

Ronin and Jiro both channeled chakra into their eyes to increase their vision and could almost perfectly see everything in the fort. Ronin squinted his eyes in confusion as he began looking at the shinobi inside the fort. From his position he could barely make out the rock sign etched into their forehead protectors, but that wasn't what caught his attention. No, what caught his attention was the sheer number of Iwa ninjas. There were more than 100 shinobi in the fort. Jiro placed a hand on his right shoulder as he realized the same thing Ronin had, there were more than 300 shinobi stationed in Fort Kei.

Ronin raised an eyebrow at this discovery before motioning for them to move to the south side to get a better view of the infiltration point. As they carefully made their way through the trees Ronin noticed that the further south they traveled, the more heavily armed the fort became. A vast majority of their 300 ninja were stationed on the south side and from his current position they were all Chunin rank or higher. Jiro let out a soft curse as he saw the infiltration point. The tunnel they were suppose use to enter the fort was guarded by four high-ranking ninjas carrying katanas that were most likely covered in poison. Jiro sighed before signing to Ronin, **what is this?**

Ronin shook his head in confusion; he had no idea why the mission details were so far off. He looked at the fort again and signed back to Jiro, **let's look for other openings.**

Jiro nodded and together they made their way around the fort from their unseen position on the hill. The ground leveled out as they quietly made their way to the west side of the fort and stopped only to find the tunnels just as heavily guarded as the south side. Every side was the same except for the northern side. Ronin looked at the small amount of ninja at the northern tunnel entrance, something wasn't right here and he couldn't help but wonder what else was incorrect in the mission details.

He chewed on his bottom lip before motioning for them to head back to camp. Jiro nodded and followed after him. They retraced their steps and headed back up the hill to return to camp, but as they reached the top of the hill, a patrol team stepped out into the moonlight. Jiro gasped and tugged Ronin into the underbrush of the forest, silently praying the shinobi hadn't seen them. Ronin's heart pounded hard against his chest and he heard Jiro hold in his breath as the four shinobi on patrol joked around and talked amongst themselves. Neither man moved until the four shinobi began descending down the hill and into the heavily guarded fort. Ronin found his voice after a few minutes. "We have to go report back to Taichou. This isn't right."

They immediately disappeared into the forest. The only indication they were there was the slight warmth on the ground, left over from their body heat.

Sakumo and Ryozo made it back to camp just as Ronin and Jiro came into the covered clearing. Ronin hurriedly saluted his captain and feverishly began giving his report. "Taichou, we have a problem."

Sakumo listened in disbelief as he heard about the wrong information in the mission details. "Is there any way we could try it?"

Ronin looked thoughtful as Jiro sighed and answered. "We could try it, but I would suggest you look at it to see the risk."

Ryozo raised a hand. "Risk? We have to try it; we have to complete the mission. You heard what the Hokage said, failure is not an option."

Sakumo nodded. "I was there, Ryozo, I heard, but if it's too dangerous we'll have to retreat. I refuse to put my team in jeopardy because the mission details were incorrect."

The others looked thoughtful before Ronin spoke again. "Taichou, we may not have a choice in this matter."

Sakumo closed his eyes. "I'll go look tomorrow night. We've been around there too much tonight."

The others nodded and after establishing a watch schedule, they settled down for some much needed rest. Sakumo's last conscious thought was about Naru and Kakashi.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I yawned as I fought my way out from underneath the heavy quilt that dad had given me last night. I stretched the kinks out of my back and idly traced the constellations on the fabric before getting dressed for the day. Naru and I needed to plan what we were going to do to the Jounin. I had a tiny idea, but had no clue how to pull it off without getting caught. Once I was dressed, I headed downstairs expecting to see dad making breakfast, but when I got into the kitchen it was Minato-sensei. "Sensei? Where's dad?"

Minato-sensei flipped the omelet in the pan over and added some rice to the mixture. "He had a mission 'kashi, he'll be back soon."

I blinked in surprise. "He left without telling me?"

Sensei paused before sighing. "It was urgent 'kashi and he didn't have time to tell you."

I opened my mouth to tell him that dad always made time to tell me when he was leaving, but stopped. I had a bad feeling about this mission and didn't trust my voice not to betray my inner thoughts. I sighed and was sitting down at the table when Naru walked in rubbing her arms for warmth. It was still cold inside the house and I bet it was even colder outside.

"Morning everyone!"

I sighed. The longer she was around Sensei, the more of a morning person she was becoming.

Sensei nodded back to her before turning the stove off. "Okay come and get it!"

We ate in relative silence. Sensei told Naru about dad leaving for his mission and she seemed to be lost in thought afterwards.

I finished my rice and egg omelet then turned all of my attention to Sensei. "Sensei? What are we doing today?"

He smiled at us both before answering. "We're going to train with Genma and Raido later this morning, team sparring and all sorts of fun stuff."

Naru grinned. "Kakashi and I against Raido and Genma? This should be interesting."

Sensei nodded before standing up. "Yeah, meet me at the training grounds in three hours. I have a meeting this morning and then I've got to go get those two. See ya."

In a swirl of leaves he disappeared, Naru watched transfixed as the last of the leaves disappeared. "I have got to learn how to do that."

I laughed at her before resting my chin on my hands. "Naru, I think I might have an idea about the prank."

Her eyes sparkled mischievously, she had thought of something too.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

Getting out of bed the next morning was hard. I could practically feel the coldness of the room in my bones and couldn't bear to leave the warmth of my bed. I listened as Kakashi's feet lightly hit the wooden floors as he went downstairs before sitting up in bed to get ready. I shivered against the coldness in the room and quickly dressed and headed downstairs.

My mind replayed yesterday as I thought about a potential prank to play on the Jounin and, if possible, the ANBU. I kind of really wanted to get Shima too. He may not have been directly responsible for what happened, but he was in charge and could have stopped it. I still got chills whenever I thought about that genjutsu. I sighed and looked around the room. This needed to be big and it needed to be good.

My eyes stopped scanning and settled on a box sitting on the floor beside the wall. It was my gift from Kakashi. I smiled before picking it up and dumping the contents out on the bed. I frowned in thought before picking up a specialized exploding tag or more loosely known as a storage tag. These things were made specifically for storing some object and when the seal was activated they would release the object, whether that it was acid or paint.

I stopped everything as the gears in my head began turning. Paint was a really good idea. I wondered silently if I could get anything else into the tags, like maybe itching power or cornstarch. I couldn't help but smile before muttering to myself. "We'll just have to experiment later, now won't we?"

I placed the tags back on the bed and headed downstairs. All I needed to do was get Kakashi alone for a couple of hours and then we could plan something.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

"You have an idea too I assume?"

Naru giggled before grabbing my hand and pulling me upstairs. "Okay, I've been waiting for him to leave because we've got to talk."

I raised an eyebrow. "Well, what are we talking about?"

She didn't answer me, she just shoved a couple of the storage tags into my hands. "Kakashi, imagine what we could put into those tags."

I blinked and thought over my answer. We could virtually put anything into the tags. They were made specifically for times when a ninja is running out of options and had limited resources to get a mission done. Minato-sensei had once put sleeping powder in one and released it onto Iku-hime to get her to stop touching him and go to sleep, or that's what he claims. I think he just knocked her out, but that's a story for another time. "Naru, we could fit anything in here. Well, maybe not people, but anything else."

Her grin widened. "Like maybe paint? Or corn starch? How about itching powder? Glitter? Honey?"

I backed away slightly as Naru got more and more excited with her questions. I chuckled before telling her to calm down. "We'd have to test those things to see, but I would say yes, it's very possible."

She walked to the bed and plopped down on it. "Good. Now, here's my plan. We are going to prank the Jounin with those storage tags. I want to put different colored paint into the tags and release them onto the unsuspecting Jounin."

I sat down on her floor and looked up at her, "How?"

She sighed, "I haven't thought it all the way through yet, but I have a beginning. I was hoping you had an idea."

I chewed on my bottom lip in thought and picked the tag up, "If we could plant these in the Jounin meeting room it would be easy to release them as long as we were nearby, but why use more than just paint Naru? Everything else just seems like overkill."

I saw the look in her eyes and immediately knew we were going to have fun with this prank, "Well, I think some Jounins deserve a little extra present from us."

I smiled, "Like the ones who voted 'no' to your Chunin promotion?"

She nodded determinately. "Rafu-sensei especially. He said he wasn't afraid of me, silly man, he should be very scared of me."

I shivered at the chill tone of her voice; it was times like these that I was very thankful I was on her side. "Okay the only problem I have with that plan is we don't know who voted 'no' for your Chunin exam and even if we did, that plan would require the tag to have to specifically pick out those Jounin in a crowd without hitting the other Jounin. That's complicated and only someone who knew something about seals could pull that off."

Naru pouted slightly before asking a quick question. "Who do we know well enough that would know something about seals?"

We both grew silent while we thought and at the same time came to the same person.

"Minato-sensei!"

"Dad!"

I stood up and paced in front of the bed, "If one of us can ask Sensei about it in a way that's not going to draw suspicion then we could get this done before the next Jounin meeting tomorrow night."

Naru pointed towards me. "You do it. I'll get the supplies and find out who voted 'no' then we'll finish planning later tonight."

I nodded in agreement. "What about the ANBU?"

She sighed before running a hand through her hair. "I want to do something similar but it's going to be difficult to break into the headquarters and set the traps up."

I looked at the time and saw it was almost time to go to the training grounds. "We'll worry about this later; we have training today."

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

Training was just about as fun as I thought it was going to be. Kakashi and I were currently fighting back to back against Genma and Raido. Their teamwork was nearly as impressive as mine and Kakashi's and it showed in their moves and actions. We had been training for a good two hours before Dad finally called us to a stop. "We'll finish this later. I've got a mission today and I would suggest you two get one for tomorrow because I'm not going to be back until later."

We both nodded before turning back to Raido and Genma, I swiftly kicked Kakashi's leg and nudged him towards Dad so he could ask him about the seals before he left for his mission. I walked towards Genma and Raido, I was fixing to hold up my part of the plan and get the names of the Jounin who voted no. "Hey Rai and Gen. I need to ask you two to do me a huge favor."

They both nodded, "Whatever it is, we'll do it."

I took a deep breath, "I need you guys to find out all of the Jounin who voted 'no' to my Chunin promotion. Please?"

Raido laughed. "Yeah, we'll do it. My Sensei was there so I'll just ask him."

I smiled and hugged them both. "Thanks so much!"

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

Sensei was getting ready to leave the training ground and head home to get ready for his mission when I stopped him. "Sensei, I have a hypothetical question for you."

He stopped and turned around. "Yeah Kakashi? What is it?"

I took a deep breath and prayed that I sounded convincing enough. "I was just wondering if it's possible to distract a single person in a crowd without causing some type of mass hysteria?"

Sensei looked thoughtful for a moment before answering. "Give me an example Kakashi, so I know I'm answering this right."

I nodded. "Okay, say you have to distract a single ninja in a crowd of civilians and not get caught or hurt the civilians. He only needs to be distracted long enough for you to make an escape and the only objects you have on you is a jar of honey and a bee."

Sensei chuckled. "Kakashi, why would you have a bee and a jar of honey?"

I took this moment to sigh in annoyance. "Sensei, it's a hypothetical question, I saw something like this on that mission with my dad and was just curious to see if it would work. If you're not going to help me then I'll just go elsewhere."

He shook his head quickly. "No, no, continue Kakashi and I'll see what I can do."

Mentally I was celebrating, he'd help me now no matter what; Sensei got a little jealous whenever I went to someone else with my questions instead of asking him. "So would I be able to coat the ninja in honey so it would attract the bee without getting the honey on anyone else?"

Sensei laughed before ruffling my hair. "It's actually a very good question and very easy to do. All you would need to do is put a seal onto the ninja and put the honey in a storage tag with the same seal, then when the seal is activated the honey would only get on the ninja with the seal. Then you could either release the bee or put the bee into a storage tag and release the seal for the bee after you release the seal for the honey."

I nodded and gave Sensei a smile. "Do you have enough time to show me how to make the seal?"

"Why do you want to know how to make it Kakashi?"

I looked into his eyes and hoped he wouldn't see my lie. "I think it would come in handy later and I want to have it down before we get deployed."

Sensei smiled before sitting on the ground and pulling out a blank scroll from his vest. I sat down in front of him and watched as he opened it. He took out a pen from his vest and began drawing an intricate design on the paper. "This is a basic seal and would fit what you're describing perfectly. Just practice writing that design and practice adding chakra to it, then once you've gotten those steps down practice releasing the seal."

I eye smiled at him and looked at the seal he had drawn. It was very intricate with swirls and sharp triangles and soft circles. I was going to need practice to get it just right. "Practice makes perfect Sensei?"

He laughed before handing me the design. "Once I get back I can show you more if you're interested."

I nodded; sealing was something I wanted to learn, so maybe this prank would work out even better than I thought it would. Sensei ruffled my hair one more time before getting up and leaving. Naru ran into the clearing and gave him a quick hug before darting back out.

I waved at Sensei and ran after Naru; she finally stopped and turned to face me with a grin on her face. "Genma and Raido are finding out the names of the Jounin. Did you get it?"

I held up the scroll and nodded. "All we need to do now is get the seals onto the Jounin before the meeting tomorrow."

Naru took the scroll from me and looked at the seal. "I think you should draw this, you have clearer handwriting than I do."

I nodded. "We're going to have to practice and get everything ready tonight so we can execute the plan tomorrow."

She nodded and rolled the scroll up and handed it back to me. I was going to tell her to go get all of the supplies when an ANBU operative landed in the clearing with us. I quickly turned around, handing resting close to my weapons pouch. He raised a hand in greeting before speaking. "The Hokage requests your presence at the Hokage Tower."

We both nodded and he disappeared. Naru looked at me anxiously. "You don't think they suspect anything do you?"

I shook my head. "It's most likely something else. Come on, let's go see what he wants."

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

The entire walk to the Hokage Tower I was a nervous wreck. The simple fact that our plan could have been overheard hadn't even crossed my mind until the ANBU showed up. I took a calming breath and walked into the Hokage's office to see what he wanted. "Kakashi, Naru come in please."

We both bowed to him and stood at attention, waiting for his orders. "I need both of your help tomorrow."

I resisted the urge to sigh, this was going to mess up our plans. "With what Hokage-sama?"

He smiled before gesturing to two medium sized bags on his desk. I blinked and walked closer to look inside the bags, which held hundreds of miniature leaf pins. I looked up at him and then at Kakashi. "What do you want us to do?"

He chuckled before pulling one of the pins out and showing me the dust and grim on it. "These have been sitting in a back room for over a decade. I think it would be a nice way to boost morale for every ninja to be given one, but, as you can see, they're in no condition to be given out as is. I'm asking if you and Kakashi would like to help me clean them up and pass them out tomorrow."

I couldn't believe our luck, not only would we have access to the meeting, we now had a way to get the seals onto the unsuspecting Jounin. Kakashi picked one up and looked at it closely before nodding to the Hokage. "We'll help Hokage-sama."

The Hokage smiled. "It's classified as a D-ranked mission, but if you guys will clean up the Jounin meeting room before the meeting then I'll up the classification to C-rank."

We both nodded before leaving the tower with the bags.

I stopped Kakashi after we were close to the marketplace and grinned at him, his own smile visible underneath his mask. "I can't believe our luck Scarecrow! Someone up there loves us!"

He laughed. "That or they're setting us up to fail miserably."

I laughed and waved off his comment before making four clones and henging them into different people. "I need you guys to go shopping for me."

I gave each one a separate list and sent them into the market with plenty of money as Kakashi and I made our way home. We had a lot of stuff to do tonight and would need lots of space, patience and clones if we ever hoped to pull this off.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

Once Naru's clones got back from the market with the many bags of supplies, I began setting up the experiments in the kitchen. We had just enough storage tags to try everything out, but I still felt like we were missing something. As I practiced drawing the seal onto the tags and sealing the honey into the tags, I was hit with an idea.

The prank needed to have more than one part to it. With all of the different supplies Naru had bought we could easily have up to three potential different pranks all in the same room. I grabbed a piece of paper and took down my thoughts. Phase one was going to be the paint, which would cover everyone. Phase two would be the specific Jounin getting the syrup and cornstarch mix. All I needed was something for the final phase.

I sighed and watched Naru empty the bags and set all of the like items together. One box caught my attention the most. My eyes widened and I went over to her and picked up the box of itching powder. What could I possibly do with the itching powder that would be different from everything else? Naru sat a pair of smoke bombs onto the table and I couldn't help but grin as I picked them up. Smoke bombs were very simple devices, all they required was some powdery substance and a wick to light.

I grinned and cracked one of the smoke bomb open, letting the powdery substance fall onto the table before mixing it with the itching powder. Using a gloved hand, I carefully scooped the mixture back into the smoke bomb, reattached the wick and taped it shut.

Naru was giving me a strange look. "Umm Kakashi? What are you doing?"

I held the itching powder bomb out to her. "This is phase three of our plan."

She giggled. "We have phases now?"

I nodded. "Yep, we have three. This is phase three, but it needs to be executed between phase one and two."

She laughed louder now. "Why?"

I mock scoffed at her. "Because it's our distraction to activate the special storage tags. We're going to throw these things in there and while they can't see we're going to activate the remaining tags."

She nodded before handing me a lighter. "Go try it out, so we can be sure it still works."

I took the itching powder bomb away and outside, and watched with glee as the smoke was still produced and, if the itching I felt when the wind blew the smoke towards me was any indication, the itching powder worked too.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I couldn't help but laugh as Kakashi tried to scratch his skin off from the itching powder. "Go take a bath before you scratch your skin off!"

He grumbled but walked upstairs to bathe. I shook my head and began making clones. All of our experiments had worked and all we needed to do now was make the tags, itching powder bombs and fix the leaf pins up. I made 20 clones and sent a group of five into different parts of the house so they would have room to work. I stretched the kinks out of my neck and poured the leaf pins onto the now empty table in front of me. I grabbed a small bowl of water and dropped a couple in to let them soak before I would begin scrubbing them.

Kakashi walked downstairs from his bath and sat at the table with me. He smiled before telling me his newest idea. "I think I know how to get into the ANBU headquarters."

I smiled at him. "Oh really? How?"

"Your clones have a particular ability that I've never seen before. Not only are they strong, but they last a very long time. I think if you could keep up a clone long enough to sneak them into the ANBU headquarters we could pull off our prank."

I raised an eyebrow at him. "We don't even have a prank for them yet."

"I do."

I took a couple of the pins out of the water and handed a clean towel to Kakashi so he could help clean them. "What?"

"It's actually inspired by Gai and that green jumpsuit."

I laughed and continued to clean the leaf 'til it shined. "Inspired by Gai? This should be funny."

Kakashi looked at the leaf pin before putting it into the clean pile. "I know a genjutsu that when cast on clothes it causes them to change colors depending on the current mood of the person wearing said clothes."

"Where in the world did you learn this genjutsu?"

Kakashi sheepishly rubbed the back of his head. "In the other timeline I bet Gai that he couldn't come up with the stupidest genjutsu of all time and he did. He searched until he found that one and won our match that day."

I giggled as I pictured the tough ANBU running around in pink and purple uniforms. I looked up at Kakashi and smiled. "We could even put the storage tags in their lockers and rig the tags to explode glitter and sequins when they open their lockers."

Kakashi laughed and added more leaf pins to the water. "Shima's a Jounin Naru, didn't you say you wanted to get something extra special for him?"

I nodded. "I'm having the clones make a couple of glitter packed storage tags. After we finish cleaning these pins up, you can start adding the seals to some of them. Genma and Raido should be by later to give me those names of the Jounin that I need."

Kakashi nodded and stood up to look out the window. We had been getting everything ready for the past five hours. The sun was setting, creating a beautiful background of pale orange and sharp red. I smirked and wondered how the pink and green was going to match the uniforms of the Jounin tomorrow.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I watched the sun set before hearing the distinctive growling of Naru's stomach. We hadn't had anything to eat since breakfast because we were so determined to get everything ready for the meeting tomorrow afternoon. I walked over to the cabinet and took out two cups if instant ramen. It would have to do for tonight, we still had a lot of work to do and not a lot of time to do it in. I began boiling water and went to check on the clones. It's not that I didn't trust them, but I wanted to see how far along they were.

I peeked into the living room where one group was sealing different colored paint into the storage tags. Afterwards Naru and I would place our chakra into them so the seals would register our chakra when we released the seals. I walked upstairs and into Naru's room, where a group was making the glitter, sequin, honey and corn starch tags. Those were going to be hard to clean up after the prank was done. A part of me wondered if Naru and I would be stuck cleaning everything up.

The next group was making the itching powder bombs in my room, much to my annoyance, being exceptionally careful about not making them near my bed. I walked into the bathroom and found a group of Naru clones cleaning the other bag of leaf pins in the sink. I smiled before heading back downstairs where the final group were helping make more paint tags. I walked into the kitchen and turned the boiling water off and poured it into the ramen noodles. Naru thanked me and together we went onto the front porch and took a small break.

"The clones are doing an amazing job with all of the tags."

She nodded. "Yeah I figured they would. I've been thinking and I want to make the leaf pins special, even though we are using some of them in our prank. I still think it's a good way to boost morale and unify us all during the war."

I agreed with her. "What do you have in mind?"

She chewed on her bottom lip. "I want to repaint the dull green of the leaf and maybe add some designs or something."

I nodded. "We could easily do that, but we do have to get some sleep tonight so we can get there early enough to set everything up."

She ate some of her ramen and nodded. Moments later two figures appeared on the road coming up to the house. Aki, who had been napping in the kitchen, instantly began barking at the unknown figures. I shushed her after I realized it was Genma and Raido.

Naru put her ramen down and ran out to meet them, Aki happily following behind her. I could hear their conversation from the porch. "We got the names Naru. There were twenty overall, including Rafu-sensei. I even wrote them down for you."

Naru thanked them and invited them to train with us again tomorrow; they nodded and waved to me before leaving.

She ran up the steps fanning the list of names at me. "We are brilliant!"

I grinned and couldn't agree more.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

After we got the names from Raido and Genma, Kakashi and I went back into the kitchen and finished cleaning up the remaining leaf pins. My clones entered the room and informed me they were done with their individual jobs.

I congratulated them and dispelled them, the force of their tiredness hitting me all at once. I gripped the table and rubbed my eyes. "I'm exhausted Kakashi."

He smiled and went into the living room and brought back a bucket of green paint. "Let's repaint these things and then we can go to bed."

I nodded and began painting. It took us four hours to repaint all of the leaf pins and add small designs on them just for looks. My eyes were drooping by the end and finally Kakashi told me to go on to bed.

"It's only about 10 o'clock. Go on to bed and I'll put the seals on the storage tags and on the backs of these twenty pins."

I nodded and dragged myself up the stairs. Sleep came easily that night.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I was developing a kink in my neck by the time I had finished putting the tiny seal onto all twenty of the leaf pins.

I stood up and stretched to try and work the kinks out of my neck. It was nearing 2 o'clock in the morning and we had to be up and ready for 8 o'clock.

I turned out the light in the kitchen, made sure the door was locked and headed upstairs. Bed sounded so good that I had no intentions of ignoring that call.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I yawned the next morning as my alarm went off at 6 o'clock. I was getting up early so I could finish whatever Kakashi didn't finish last night and clean up the messes left over from our supplies. I walked around the house and found it remarkably clean despite everything that happened last night. I picked up the discarded storage tags and the buckets of paint and dumped them into the trashcan.

I whistled in appreciation as I walked into the kitchen and discovered the neat stacks of paint tags, sticky tags, glitter tags, and itching bombs settled onto the table. Kakashi had outdone himself after I had gone to bed. I was impressed. I moved our supplies from the kitchen table and began putting them into our weapons pouches. The itching bombs and half of all of the tags would stay at the house until we set up the prank at ANBU headquarters.

Once I had all of our supplies in their proper places I began cooking breakfast. I didn't know what time Kakashi had finally went to bed, but I wanted to show him how much I appreciated his help with everything. I took out the bacon, eggs, and toast and began making the best breakfast I could for him. As I stood by the stove and cooked, I thought about today's prank. If we could pull it off, it was going to be amazing. I heard Kakashi stagger down the stairs and turned to give him a bright smile. "Good morning and thanks for finishing up."

He nodded at me tiredly and began eating the food I had already put onto the table. Once we had finished eating and gotten dressed for the day, we headed out with the two bags of leaf pins and pouches full of storage tags. The Konoha Jounin had no idea what was in store for them today.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

The Third Hokage smiled at the two Chunin in front of him. They had worked very hard on the leaf pins, even repainting them and livening them up with designs. "I'm impressed you two. I do believe I would like one now after all the hard work you two have put into them."

He didn't recognize the look that passed between the two and didn't question it as they handed one over to him. "Thank you. Now the Jounin meeting room is right down the hall. Make sure you lock the door after you get in there; no one is allowed in there until the meeting. Then I need you two back here by 2 o'clock to help hand them out."

The two Chunins nodded and left the bags of leaf pins on his desk before heading to finish their mission. "Those two are such good kids."

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I walked into the room and locked it after Naru entered. A smile was plastered onto her face and she practically danced around me. "I didn't expect the Hokage to want one Kakashi! Do you think we'll go to jail for pranking the Hokage?"

I laughed and opened my weapons pouch to take the storage tags out. "Nah, I bet he'll think it's funny."

She looked at me. "The Jounin won't though."

"Well, they shouldn't have underestimated you or your prankster powers."

She laughed and we got started. Naru made twenty clones and gave them specific orders to start cleaning. "I want these floors swept, mopped, trash taken out, windows washed, anything in here that's wood needs to be dusted and we need to get the cobwebs out of the corners."

The clones nodded and got to work, each one doing a specific task and getting the job done fairly fast, might I add. I grinned beneath my mask and placed the tags onto a table right beside the ones Naru had brought with her. "Let's get to work Scarecrow."

I nodded and began strategically placing the tags along the walls and onto the ceilings. They would be covered up with a very low level genjutsu that was almost impossible to detect because it was strictly for hiding facial blemishes. Yes, whenever Gai and I had our stupidest genjutsu contest in the original timeline that was the one I found. I miss the old Gai, but I'm beginning to get reacquainted with the new one. Our rivalry this time is much the same, except now my dad and Minato-sensei like to egg it on.

Naru had taken the initiative to start placing the tags onto the low ceiling, making sure to put one right above the Hokage's chair. I put the last tag over the locked door and stood back to admire our handy work. The tags were visible, but with a quick flash of hand seals the paper and ink covered walls returned to the normal white color it was originally. Naru stood beside me and dispelled her clones and together we looked around the Jounin meeting room, there was not a single trace of our prank in the room. I quickly went over to the window and unlocked it so we would be able to throw the itching bombs in later and of course watch our prank come alive. I looked at the clock and saw that it was 11 o'clock and the meeting was at 3 o'clock so we had just enough time to break into the ANBU headquarters and plant their surprise and get back to watch the fun.

Naru grabbed my hand. "Let's go report to the Hokage and get going. We don't have much time."

I nodded and into the hall we went.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

Kakashi looked nervous and that was never a good sign. We stood outside the ANBU headquarters and were looking at the large building, it hadn't taken very long to go back to the house and get the rest of the tags, but we needed to hurry. We needed to get inside but the only other door besides the front one was locked. I sighed and sat on the ground to try and think a quick plan up.

My eyes widened and I made a single clone and henged it into a bug. Kakashi raised an eyebrow at me before eye smiling as he realized what I was doing. The Naru bug clone entered underneath the locked door and once on the other side, unlocked the door for us. Kakashi walked in first and I slowly entered, closing the door behind me. Everything was dark, dark and wet feeling. I felt cold and kind of depressed walking into the room.

Kakashi touched my shoulder and I jumped, he signed something to me, but I could barely make out his fingers in the darkness. **Lockers are close, be quiet.**

After I got his message I silently walked behind him and towards the place he said the lockers were. I wasn't worried about running into any ANBU members, according to Kakashi a majority of the ANBU forces took night missions and it was too early for them to be up yet. I held onto that hope as we walked through a narrow hallway and into an open door. I blinked at the sudden change in lights; in this room everything was brighter but still dim.

It amazed me that the continuous theme of depression and death was a popular thing in the lower levels of ANBU, if I ever become Hokage I think my first order of business would be to color this place up. I smiled at my own thoughts and followed behind Kakashi. My eyes widened as I saw the ANBU uniforms lying on a huge rack at the end of the room, Kakashi was going to place the genjutsu and I was going to place the tags in the lockers. We split off and began our time consuming work.

I gently jiggled the handle of one of the lockers and to my surprise it opened, I smirked and began placing the tags into the back of the lockers and rigging a thin thread of chakra string onto the door of the locker. Once the locker was opened, the chakra string would activate and cause the tags to release their contents right into the face of the owner of the locker. I tightened the string up and closed the door, silently counting as I made my way down the line.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I looked at the ANBU uniforms; it seemed like a lifetime ago since I had worn one of those. I shivered against memories that were barely there as I performed the genjutsu. I touched one of the sleeves and smiled as it turned green, yeah happiness was exactly what I felt at this moment.

After I cast the genjutsu on all of the uniforms I went back to help Naru, she was almost done and only had a couple more lockers to go. I helped rig the final locker and together we head out the back door, making sure to lock it behind us.

Sighing in relief I grabbed Naru's hand. "Come on, let's go get ramen before we go back to the Hokage Tower. It might be the last chance you have."

Naru laughed and ran ahead of me; we couldn't wait for 3 o'clock.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Naru and Kakashi stood in front of the Hokage and retrieved the bags with the leaf pins. Secretly the special seal pins rested in Naru's pocket, they knew which Jounin to give them to. About thirty minutes before 3 o'clock the Jounin started entering the meeting room, the Hokage greeted them and Naru and Kakashi passed out the pins. Many knew Kakashi simply through Sakumo and they knew Naru from the Chunin Exams.

It was common knowledge that many of the Jounin did not agree with the decision to let Naru and Kakashi become Chunin at their age. Many sighed in disbelief after seeing the two in the meeting room before smiling at the adorable way they greeted them before handing them a pin. Kakashi's left eye twitched a couple of times because of all the hair ruffles he was getting from the male Jounin and the cheek pinches from the female Jounin.

Naru took it all in stride though. They would comment on how adorable she was and she would play along and blush before politely handing them a pin. Rafu walked into the room and Naru looked at her feet before approaching him.

"Rafu-sensei? I just want to tell you that I'm sorry for getting upset the other day at you for voting 'no' to my Chunin Exam promotion. I realize that you were just worried about me and I hope you can one day see me as a ninja and not a little girl."

Rafu kneeled down to her level, smiled at her and took the pin from her outstretched hand. Naru stood on her tip toes and kissed his cheek.

Kakashi rolled his eyes and signed quickly to her after the man left, **you'd make a good actress.**

She smiled brightly and continued handing out the pins. Eventually the final Jounin that were not on missions or duty made it into the room, the Hokage thanked Naru and Kakashi before dismissing them. They both bowed before the Hokage and Naru grabbed Kakashi's arm and practically dragged him out after her.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I looked at Kakashi and followed him out onto the roof; we were going to walk our way down the side of the building and onto the ledge outside the Jounin meeting room. Once there, we saw that the meeting had already begun, we both knew better than to set the prank off during the middle of the Jounin meeting. So all we had to do was wait until the Hokage was finished talking and then we would activate phase one as Kakashi liked to call it. I was all too excited about phase two to even care about anything else.

I would get Rafu and his Jounin lackeys! I was actually very proud of myself; I had concocted that little forgiveness speech this morning and figured it would only catch him more off guard. I would need to scrub my lips later though, they touched his cheek. Kakashi and I played rock-paper-scissors for a good hour and a half before the Hokage started winding down. I listened very carefully as he thanked them for coming and then with a smile, I motioned for Kakashi to release the paint seals.

He did and with an evil chuckle he spoke softly. "Phase one complete."

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

The Third Hokage was just finishing up his speech and wishing his Jounin a good day when he got a very eerie feeling from above his head.

It was almost like a faint spike of chakra, but there was nothing on the ceiling so he just shook it off and continued with the dismissals. Then he stopped again, but this time he saw that a couple of the Jounin noticed it too. The Third stood up and felt the little sparks of chakra appear around the room, before he could say anything though the chakra spark above his head burned bright and as he looked up he met face first with bright orange paint.

A cry was heard from all around as the Jounin were covered in different shades of pink, orange, green, red and blue, completely covering their uniforms and mixing into hair. The Jounin didn't know whether to run or try and get the paint off and the worst part was that it kept coming. Rafu was splattered from head to toe in white and silver paint. The Hokage looked over at Shima and saw him covered in deep red and light blue. He couldn't help but think the colors mixed well together.

The Third tried to wipe the orange paint away from his face and was going to speak when a window opened and to his horror eight smoke bombs were thrown into the room. The Third backed away from all the windows and prepared to start fighting. How someone got close enough to do all this he would never know. The smoke bombs had begun filling up the room and leaving behind coughing a sputtering Jounin, then they started itching.

The Third could not believe his eyes or skin; the smoke bombs carried itching powder. Someone had taken apart smoke bombs and put itching powder into them.

He sighed and instantly knew who would was responsible. "HATAKE KAKASHI AND UZU NARU!"

Kakashi's eyes widened as he heard the Hokage's yell. "Time to enact phase three Naru!"

She nodded and released the final seals. The sound of heavy dripping and disgusted groans echoed outside where the two pranksters were.

Naru looked at Kakashi. "Time to hide now!"

He nodded and off they took away from the Hokage Tower.

* * *

The Hokage watched as the last bit of honey and cornstarch fell into Rafu's hair as well as twenty other Jounin that had direct contact with Naru's Chunin vote.

He couldn't believe it. She was getting back all of the Jounin who refused to allow her to become a Chunin. He admired the girl's spunk, but cornstarch was going a little too far; that would take days to get out of his hair. The Hokage looked at Umino Shima again and almost couldn't hold back his laughter.

The T&I head was currently covered from head to toe in purple and pink glitter. The itching bombs had fizzled out and he looked around at the mess. It looked like a war zone, with splotches of paint, cornstarch, honey and glitter littering everywhere.

The only problem was that the Hokage wondered where his ANBU were at a time like this.

* * *

The ANBU headquarters had never before been in such a frenzy.

A majority of the ANBU forces had been called to a disturbance at the Hokage Tower and were going to get dressed when they opened their lockers and got the surprise of a lifetime. The ANBUs who opened their lockers now sported uniforms covered with pink glitter, sequins and feathers.

One ANBU captain held his boar mask in his hand and just stared in the mirror with a permanent twitch in his left eye. "What is this?"

A female ANBU walked by and shrugged her shoulders. "Taichou, you might want to come see the spare uniforms the guys have put on."

Boar pinched the bridge of his nose and walked over with the female ANBU before sighing and groaning. His men now stood in full formation wearing multicolored uniforms. "I'm not even going to ask. Just get to the Hokage Tower and see what is going on!"

Boar went back to his locker and picked up the bits of glitter and threw them across the bench. "This is not my day."

The ANBU stormed into the Jounin meeting room to see paint splattered Jounin, some sporting cornstarch and honey, and only one sporting glitter. The Jounin tried to hide their snickers from the multicolored ANBU, but were rather unsuccessful.

The Third just sighed as he looked at the sequins and feathers that adorned a couple of uniforms to the ones that were changing colors.

He just shook his head in mirth before speaking. "Congratulations, we've all just been pranked by Hatake Kakashi and Uzu Naru. Someone find them and bring them to me now."

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I looked back over my shoulder as we traveled through the forest. The Hokage knew it was us, we were screwed. Naru was panting beside me as we raced from tree to tree. I signal for us to stop and together we settled on a tree branch to catch our breath. Naru finally burst out laughing. "Did you see their faces whenever the paint fell?"

I laughed with her for a couple of minutes before standing up. "Naru, where are we going? We're not going to leave the village and eventually we have to go back."

She smiled at me. "Don't worry Scarecrow, I give it three minutes before ANBU catches up with us and drags us back to the Hokage Tower."

As if on cue, the tree branch we were on sagged with extra weight and I sighed as I turned around to look at a taller, very pink ANBU captain. I decided to play the brat card. "Yes sir ANBU-san? Do you need something?"

Naru snorted and I could tell the ANBU wasn't amused. "Kid, I make deaths look like accidents for a living. Don't try me any more than you've tried me today or I might be tempted to practice on you."

I nodded and helped Naru to her feet. He didn't say another word as he picked me up and swung me over his shoulder. I watched as Naru was put over the shoulder of another ANBU. I couldn't keep the smile off my face; we were caught, but it was the single funniest thing I had ever seen.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

The Jounin in the room were still itching and still painted, but they wanted to stick around to see what Kakashi and Naru had to say for themselves. The ANBU appeared and dropped the two Chunin unceremoniously to the floor. Naru landed with a soft 'ouch.' Both Chunin scrambled to their feet to stand before the Hokage.

The Third sighed before standing up. "I'm not even going to ask if you did this or not. I'm pretty sure you did. I just want to know if this is going to come out."

Kakashi nodded. "We tried it out on Dad's extra uniforms. We tried everything out to make sure none of the pranks would hurt anybody or anything."

The Hokage sighed before finally letting out the laughter he was holding in.

Rafu was furious. "Hokage-sama! Look at what they've done! There must be some type of punishment for this!"

Other Jounin and ANBU nodded in agreement. The Hokage smiled after getting his laughter under control. "You want me to punish two seven-year-old Chunin for pranking Jounin and ANBU a whole lot older than them? I don't know whether I should punish them or promote them. Can you imagine the level of stealth they had to have in order to accomplish this?"

Naru blushed at the compliments and winked at Kakashi. The Jounin in the room were beginning to realize that two children had gotten the better of them. Some blushed, some cursed and some actually laughed.

The Hokage spoke again. "I do want to hear how you two pranked the ANBU because that place should be near impossible to get into. I do want you two to apologize to everyone too. And I will be telling Sakumo when he gets back."

Both Kakashi and Naru nodded, knowing that he would find it hilarious. They both turned to the older ninjas and bowed before telling them they were sorry. Naru stepped forward before saying, "We just wanted you to see us as ninja and not as children. We're more than capable despite our age."

The Jounin nodded and awkwardly left the meeting room, gradually filing into the hallway, most stiff from paint and some from honey and cornstarch. Shima stayed right where he was before walking over to the two Chunin and kneeling in front of them. "I've got to hand it to you, that was the funniest thing I've experienced since the war began. Thanks."

The two Chunin watched as a small figure appeared in the doorway and giggled childishly before yelling out in a high-pitched voice, "Daddy's pretty!"

A female voice carried into the room. "Iruka, don't go into that room; it's covered in paint."

A pretty dark skinned woman with chocolate brown hair and bright blue eyes came into view and picked up the small figure. She took one look at her husband and couldn't stop laughing. "You're right Ruru; daddy is pretty!"

Shima snorted. "Ha-ha, very funny Kita."

The woman, Umino Kita, just smiled and winked at Naru before disappearing from the doorway with her child. Shima sighed before shaking some of the glitter out of his hair and followed after his wife.

The Hokage watched as the ANBU captain studied the children before kneeling in front of them, meeting their eyes. "You two are Chunin right?"

The Hokage stood and stopped the captain. "No, they're too young to be recruits. Never in a million years."

The captain sighed before getting up. "It's a shame, they would have been excellent together."

Kakashi stared after the man before turning back to the Hokage. "So how much trouble are we in?"

The Hokage laughed. "Just clean this up and we'll call it a day."

They both nodded and got to work cleaning up the mess their prank had made. The later the Hokage called them into his office and further questioned them about how the prank was pulled off.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo sighed as they hid their packs once more. He was going to scout out the fort tonight. He had to see if the risk was too great for their team to continue or not. He took the entire team with him and stationed one man at every gate.

He needed them to see everything tonight because he was not risking their lives because of faulty mission information. The White Fang watched in silence as the Iwa shinobi marched around the perimeter of their fort, keeping it well guarded. He had seen first hand the huge numbers of shinobi and knew they wouldn't be able to storm the Fort with that many shinobi.

Sakumo was stationed at the south gate and watching it closely. It was the most heavily guarded and there was no way they were getting through it.

Ronin and Jiro saw pretty much the same thing they did the night before, impossibly strong defenses and huge numbers of shinobi. They never felt more discouraged than they had at that moment. There was no way they were going to be able to infiltrate from the east or west side, their only hope was the north side.

They secretly hoped Ryozo would see something they didn't.

Ryozo carefully scanned the tunnel. There was a good possibility they could infiltrate from this side. The number of shinobi here was less than everywhere else in the fort. He figured with his explosions and Jiro's sheer strength they could take whatever enemy was on this side before the others were alerted. Ryozo just wished Jiro's faithful canine companion was here with them, but she was still recovering from giving birth.

He sighed and kept watch. Night two near Fort Kei was turning up about as exciting as watching the grass grow.

All four shinobi converged back at the campsite before the early dawn hours. They were all tired and somewhat discouraged, until Ryozo gave his results. "We could possibly take them from the north side. It's not as heavily guarded and we would have perfect coverage at night. I say we do it tonight and get out of here. We've been gone four days and I think we're just wasting time."

Sakumo nodded and told everyone to get some rest, he would take first watch.

As the others slept, Sakumo thought about the mission. As long as the Iwa ninjas did not catch onto their presence here then they could still infiltrate. They would enter from the north side and burn it down to the ground, but even then they might not complete the mission. It was too risky. Their mission details were wrong, so there was no telling what else was wrong. Sakumo sighed and occupied his mind while he waited for his turn to sleep by chewing on a ration bar. The sleep was much appreciated when he finally got the chance to lie down and rest his eyes.

When he opened them again it was dark and everyone was struggling to standing positions, the ground wasn't the best place to sleep on. Everyone knew they had a job to do and everyone was ready to do it. Sakumo called Tobias and Shiri to him. They settled beside their master and waited for his commands. He watched as his team sharpened kunai and loaded their weapons pouches with extra weapons. Tonight was going to be interesting. Sakumo pushed all thoughts out of his mind and gave the move out signal, but Tobias stopped him and whined. He looked down at the wolf before petting his head and walking forward, again the wolf stopped him. "Tobias?"

The wolf nodded towards the forest outside the clearing and they saw what he felt, a singular Iwa shinobi was ghosting through the trees. Ronin smirked. "I'll take care of him."

Sakumo nodded and let Ronin follow after the Iwa ninja, but the further away Ronin got, the worse the knot in Sakumo's stomach became. Then he heard the pained grunt from the direction Ronin was in, his eyes widened and the entire team chased after him as he ran forward. The further away from the clearing her got, the heavier the scent of blood got. Sakumo's heart leapt into his throat as he realized it was Ronin's blood. His chakra sprung to life and fanned out behind him as he willed himself to go faster.

Sakumo stopped as he came into the clearing where he saw five Iwa Jounin and Ronin; the man was cut up pretty badly. His left arm was broken and he was bleeding from his temple. Sakumo couldn't believe it. That was a patrol, the mission details said the patrol happened every three days, not two.

Ronin looked up into his captors face and grinned a bloody grin. "You're going to lose anyway dirt bags, so get over it."

The Iwa ninja closest to him didn't like that and sucker punched him right above the left eye. "Konoha scum, why are you here?"

Ronin stared blankly ahead and never flinched as a kunai was raised to eye level. "Well then, die scum!"

Sakumo's eyes widened as he watched the kunai in slow motion, his body sprung into action and using his tanto deflected the blade. His teammate's life was more important that some stupid mission. Ronin sighed in relief as Sakumo helped him to his feet. The others attacked from the trees, effectively taking out four of the five enemy shinobi; the last one had disappeared through the trees.

Sakumo sighed in disbelief as he helped Ronin up. "We have to see if they are strengthening their forces. We still might have a chance."

Jiro stopped. "Ronin's arm is useless, he can't fight with a broken arm and head wound."

Sakumo nodded. "I just need to make sure there's not a chance for us to still take the place. Ronin's going to go back to the campsite and wait."

Ronin nodded and stiffly walked back to the campsite Shiri following behind him the entire way.

They looked out over the hill with grief in their hearts. Fort Kei was alive and thumping with activity. Every single tunnel, wall, gate and crack had a shinobi standing guard. They could not complete their mission; they were going to fail and all because of incorrect mission details. Sakumo closed his eyes and ordered the retreat.

Ryozo snarled. "We still have a chance!"

Sakumo rounded on him. "A chance? Look at those shinobi, 300 versus three. We'd be walking into a suicide mission and I'm not willing to put my team at risk because of incorrect mission details! We go home and we go home alive."

Ryozo snarled again before taking off into the underbrush. Sakumo's last look over the hill revealed the Iwa forces beginning their scan of the forest in search of them.

As Sakumo rushed his team back to Konoha, all he could think about was the tightening knot in his stomach and the feeling of dread.

What exactly would this mission cost Konoha?

* * *

Minato couldn't control his laughter as he heard about the prank Kakashi and Naru played on the Jounin and ANBU. "They actually pulled something like that off? Hey what can I say? They're good at what they do."

Umino Kita just laughed. "They covered Shima in glitter Minato, purple and pink glitter."

He just continued to chuckle. "Well, I'm going to go check up on them, make sure they're not planning revenge or anything."

"Bye Minato!"

He found Kakashi and Naru sparring against Genma and Raido; he chuckled softly before watching their progress. He would bug them about the prank later.

* * *

Two days later Sakumo and his team carried a hurt Ronin in through the village gates. It was late and very dark. They went straight to the hospital with Ronin and Sakumo made the journey to the Hokage Tower alone to give his mission report. The Hokage waved him in after Sakumo knocked on his door. "I hope everything went well Sakumo."

The White Fang shook his head and stared into his leader's eyes. "Hokage-sama the mission was a failure."

The Hokage's eyes widened. "What? I thought I made it very clear that the mission had to be a success!"

Sakumo nodded his head. "Yes sir you did, but I'm not putting my team at risk for a suicide mission."

The Third breathed deeply. "Go home Hatake, just go home. I have to talk to the Council and we'll discuss everything from there."

Sakumo blinked in surprise. "Hokage-sama? What about the mission report?"

The Third stood up. "I don't need to hear how you failed Hatake, all I needed was a yes or no. I don't have time to read the report because you might have just cost us the war!"

Sakumo's eyes widened and he bowed before his Hokage and quickly returned home. He didn't even go to the hospital. He needed to be home and that was where he was going.

He walked into the living room to see Aki snuggled beside Kakashi on the couch, Naru sprawled out on the floor and a plate of dango sitting between them. A clenching fear entered Sakumo's heart. Would his actions affect them? He sighed and climbed the stairs to his bed; he would worry about it in the morning.

Everything would be fine in the morning.

* * *

Everything wasn't fine in the morning though. At exactly dawn Sakumo was rudely awaken by ANBU ninja that appeared in his bedroom.

"Hatake Sakumo. You have been summoned to the Hokage Tower for your hearing."

Sakumo blinked and sat up in bed, "Hearing? What did I do?"

The ANBU made an undistinguishable sound. "You are being tried as a traitor of Konoha."

Sakumo's heart skipped a beat and his stomach hit the floor. "Please cooperate with us Hatake-san, we'd hate for your son to see his father dragged from the house in chains."

Sakumo numbly nodded and began pulling clothes on. The Hokage was actually trying him as a traitor?


	17. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15**

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo straightened his clothes and took a quick glance in the mirror, he looked horrible. He hadn't showered after he returned home, too exhausted mentally and physically to even bother, so needless to say he was in no condition to stand before the Council. He looked over his shoulder at the ANBU captain, "Do I have enough time to clean up first?"

The captain simply looked at the clock before answering, "Ten minutes."

Sakumo nodded, grabbed a clean set of clothes, and moved to his bathroom, only to discover he had a follower. Sakumo stopped and turned around to the ANBU wearing the Tiger mask that was following him, "I don't need help."

ANBU Tiger was silent before answering, "We have to make sure you don't try to run."

Sakumo raised an eyebrow at the man before laughing, "I have no reason to run; I'm not guilty."

The ANBU captain just waved Sakumo ahead but once the bathroom door closed, he stationed two ANBU outside the bathroom window and one right by the door. They would know if Sakumo tried to run.

Sakumo sighed as the hot water ran over his tired body, the soft spray of the shower quickly washing off dirt and grime. He quickly dressed and ran a towel through his wet hair, trying to dry it the best he could before pulling it back into a low ponytail. He gripped the porcelain sink before wiping the steam off of the mirror to get a final glance at his appearance. The face in the mirror stared back calmly, as if he had not a care in the world, but deep down Sakumo could see the whirlwind of emotions that were fighting to erupt and overflow from his body.

Sakumo closed his eyes and bottled his emotions down, before standing straight and walking back into the bedroom. He was a shinobi of Leaf; he would stand tall against whatever was thrown at him. As he passed by his bag, he grabbed the mission scroll and put it into his vest.

The ANBU captain nodded towards Sakumo when he grabbed the mission report before leading him to the window, and towards the Hokage Tower. It was early morning in Konoha, and the streets were bare, almost like a ghost town Sakumo thought as he followed behind the ANBU. Once at the Hokage Tower he was led into the lower levels and left standing in a darkened hallway, outside a large door.

Two ANBU stood silently at attention on either side of the door; suddenly they moved together and opened the large door. Sakumo blinked as light poured into the darkened hallway, and soon the White Fang found himself standing in front of the Council of Konoha.

Konoha's Council was as old as the Village itself and set in its ways. Each major ninja clan, a couple of important civilian political figures, the Hokage's advisors, and the Hokage made up Konoha's Council. Their decisions helped run the Village and public opinion weighed heavily on what the Council thought. Sakumo had seen entire businesses go bankrupt because the Council disapproved of them; he knew his future weighed heavily on what they thought of him.

If the Council decided him a traitor, regardless of what he and his team knew, then Konoha would view him a traitor. It was a very sobering realization, never once had the White Fang ever allowed another person to decide his fate and as the Hokage stood and motioned him forward; he decided now was not a good time to try new things. He would tell them the truth and hope they saw his view; he refused to sacrifice his team for a suicide mission.

Where was the honor in that?

* * *

The Hokage motioned Sakumo forward before speaking to the Council, "I have called the Council together this morning for an emergency meeting because of the outcome of the infiltration of Fort Kei, led by Hatake Sakumo."

Many of the Council members sat up straighter and focused on Sakumo before turning their attention back to the Hokage, "Regrettably, the mission was a failure and today we are going to hear the reason behind the failure and go from there."

The Council members began whispering amongst themselves, many were active shinobi and had gone on missions with Sakumo before; they knew the man's reputation and his fierce loyalty to Konoha. For Sakumo to have failed his mission there must have been a very good reason. Nara Shikaku, one of the younger clan heads, leaned back in his chair before speaking, "Hokage-sama, how does failing this mission affect Konoha?"

The Hokage folded his hands underneath his chin before answering the question, "The mission had to be completed successfully, or Konoha was going to suffer. Fort Kei is one of the major supply forts between Iwa and Konoha, if that fort is up and running then Iwa forces could practically walk their way through Kusagakure and into our territory. They would have access to strong supply lines for both food and weapons; Fort Kei could possibly be the reason Iwa wins the war. With Fort Kei still up and running, our supply lines can now face potential problems with supplying our shinobi and Village."

The civilian members had gone pale as the shinobi members sat still in their chairs, "We also needed Fort Kei destroyed in order to slow down or possibly stop the movement of Iwa's forces. We have enemy ninja less than two day's travel from our Village and that is too close for comfort."

Sakumo shifted in his stance as the Council members took in the information and turned towards him, he could practically feel the ice in the stares he was getting. The Hokage motioned him to speak and after bowing in respect to the Council, he began his tale. "My team and I made excellent time getting to the location provided in the mission details and, as we always do, we went through the mission details once camp was set up. After making sure the mission details were known, I sent Jiro and Ronin to scout the area out. Ryozo and I went to see if we could find any signs of patrol so we could determine the possible patrol patterns, we lucked out and found the patrol during one of their rounds. Once we all made it back to camp, Ronin and Jiro gave the team a very disturbing report. The mission details were completely wrong, not a single thing in the mission details were correct."

The Hokage blinked, "What?!"

Sakumo nodded and took the mission scroll out of his vest; he walked forward and placed it in the Hokage's hands, "Yes sir, the mission details claim only 100 shinobi, we counted over 300. The mission details told us to infiltrate on the south side and from our observations the south side was the most heavily guarded. The major difference though is the patrol rounds, the mission details claimed a patrol every third day, they patrolled every second day and nearly caught us."

The Hokage quickly scanned over the mission details before dropping the papers onto the table, "Somehow the mission details for Fort Kei and Fort Rui were switched, no wonder the mission was a failure. I'm truly sorry Sakumo for doubting one of my best shinobi; I should have listened to the report last night."

Sakumo let out a sigh of relief and was opening his mouth to thank the Hokage when Danzo interrupted him. "Hokage-sama, I took the liberty of interviewing his teammates early this morning and there's a side of the story he's not telling."

The Hokage raised an eyebrow at the dark haired man beside his advisors, his dark eyes bore into the Hokage's with silent intensity. "Danzo, what do you mean there's another side to the story?"

Danzo stood and crossed his arms over his chest, "Do you want me to tell you or his teammates?"

The Hokage shook his head, "Sakumo, what is he talking about?"

Sakumo took a deep breath, "There was a chance that we could have completed the mission. Once we found out about the wrong mission details, I personally scouted the area and found that we could have entered from the north end. We were going to infiltrate the next night, but we found a lone Iwa patrol ninja close to our camp. I didn't know whether or not we had been spotted so Ronin chased after him, and was caught. I saved him and we headed back to Konoha."

The Hokage shifted in his seat before running a hand through his hair, Danzo walked over to the door and opened it, Sakumo's three teammates walked in. Ronin looked pale and sickly still recovering from his hospital visit, Jiro was staring at the floor, and Ryozo sneered at Sakumo, all three were brought to stand beside their captain. The Hokage questioned Danzo, "What is the meaning of this?"

Danzo spread his arms out and sat back down, "This is a trial and I've acquired witnesses. The Council understands that accidents like misplaced mission details happen and if Sakumo would have come back with the mission failure because of that then I wouldn't think it necessary to interview his teammates, but the real reason Hatake Sakumo failed his mission is because he broke the shinobi code."

Hyuga Hiashi's piercing gaze captured Danzo, "The shinobi code?"

Danzo smirked at the Hyuga Head, "Yes the shinobi code, Rule 4 a shinobi must always put the mission first. Rule 25, a shinobi must never show emotions. Sakumo broke both of these rules and his rule breaking could cost Konoha the war." The Council room erupted with noise as the ninja clan heads and civilian council members argued amongst themselves over what this meant.

The Hokage stood and caught their attention, "We will handle this like adults instead of arguing amongst ourselves. Ronin I want your opinion, did Sakumo saving you cost Konoha the mission?"

Ronin took several deep breaths and cleared his throat before answering. "Hokage-sama, Taichou saved my life and I don't…"

Danzo interrupted, "The Hokage didn't ask you that. Did Sakumo saving you cost Konoha the mission?"

Ronin exhaled and nodded his head, "Yes sir Hokage-sama. When I was captured the Iwa patrol thought I was alone and didn't know about the others until Taichou saved me. Then one of the Iwa ninjas got away and alerted the fort, that's when we failed our mission."

Sakumo closed his eyes and heard the Hokage ask Jiro a question, "Could your team have completed the mission if Sakumo hadn't saved Ronin?"

Jiro looked into the Hokage's eyes and nodded his head yes, "The shinobi had no idea we were there; Ronin could have easily been a solo ninja. Then when Sakumo saved him they knew and alerted the others, making it impossible to infiltrate the fort. It would have been a suicide mission if we continued."

The Hokage nodded and asked the final member of the team the same question, "Ryozo, did this rescue cause the mission to fail?"

Ryozo didn't miss a beat and nodded his head, "If we would have left Ronin to his fate, the fort could have been infiltrated and burned to the ground. And as far as Ronin is concerned, at least he would have died fighting for his Village."

Sakumo clenched his fists at Ryozo's final remark but instead of saying anything he focused on the Hokage. The Hokage looked very disturbed but still in complete control of his emotions. It amazed Sakumo how the man could be so in control of his emotions. The Hokage sighed, "The Council needs to reach a decision in the hearing, you four go wait outside and once we have a verdict I'll come get you."

All four men exited the room; Ronin touched Sakumo on the shoulder and softly told him, "I'm so sorry." Sakumo nodded and sat on the bench outside the door and waited while the Council decided his fate.

* * *

The Hokage scanned the people in the room before him; they were his Council members, chosen because of political position and wisdom. He just hoped they chose wisely for this decision. "Council, you have heard the case of Hatake Sakumo. The mission details were somehow switched and thus the mission was doomed to fail, but they found a second way into the fort, only to have those plans thwarted. I hate to say it, but because of Hatake Sakumo's rescue of Ronin, the mission has failed. Now we decide how to handle this situation."

Inuzuka Tsume ran her finger along the wooden table in front of her, "Sakumo has never before shown traitorous tendencies, and he's always completed the mission to the best of his ability. I just don't suggest us marking him as a traitor. He made a mistake."

Danzo shook his head, "A mistake that could cost us the war! People will die because of this mistake, was one life really worth the lives of the hundreds that will now die?"

Hiashi nodded to Danzo, "He broke the rules and he must suffer the consequences."

Shikaku shook his head, "We're talking about lives that haven't been lost yet. We are only speculating to the damage that Konoha will receive from this. I'm not sugar coating anything, but Sakumo shouldn't be marked as a traitor because of this."

Uchiha Fugaku slammed a hand down on the table, "He can't walk away from this without a punishment either. If we let him go without punishment, then more shinobi will think they can break the shinobi code and get away with it."

Haruno Kin, civilian member of the Council, sighed before speaking, "Regardless of what we decide everyone will know about Sakumo's betrayal of the shinobi code, because in the end Sakumo betrayed his code of honor."

Koharu rested her chin on her folded hands before addressing the Council, "I agree with most of what has been said, Sakumo will be given a punishment. He has to be made an example of; Konoha will not tolerate shinobi who break our rules."

The Third stood before the Council, "So have you made your decision?"

The Council members nodded their heads and Shikaku sighed before telling the Hokage their decision. "Hokage-sama, we do not think Hatake Sakumo should be marked as a traitor, but he should receive a punishment for breaking the shinobi code. As far as what punishment, we have no idea."

Danzo stood and addressed the Hokage, "I say we strip him of the Jounin rank and demote him to Chunin or suspend him for a set amount of time."

Hiashi shook his head, "We need Sakumo too badly to demote him, suspending would be a good punishment though. I'd say six weeks suspension and then he could rejoin the ranks." Around the room, heads nodded in agreement.

The Third sighed, "Then let's vote. All in favor of suspending Hatake Sakumo for six weeks say Ay."

The room was filled with the unanimous vote of Ay and The Third sighed one last time before declaring it final. "Send in Hatake Sakumo so he can hear the Council's decision."

* * *

Sakumo walked back into the Council meeting room alone, his heart pounded against his chest and sweat ran down his back. He had a bad feeling about the Council's decision. The Hokage called him forward, "Hatake Sakumo the Council has reached a decision on your hearing."

Sakumo nodded and stood at attention, back ramrod straight, and waited for the results. "The Council does not mark you as a traitor of Konoha, but they do acknowledge that you are a traitor to your shinobi code of honor. You broke the rules, Sakumo, by saving Ronin and from the evidence we have heard, the mission could have been completed if it was put before the life of Ronin. Instead of letting Ronin gain great honor from dying for his Village, you decided to bring dishonor onto your name for failing the mission. The Council hereby suspends you from shinobi duty for six weeks, please turn in your forehead protector and vest. Hopefully by the time you punishment is up, you'll follow the rules more carefully."

Sakumo's heart dropped into his stomach, suspended for six weeks? How was he going to make money? With heavy hands, Sakumo untied the forehead protector from around his forehead and placed it onto the table in front of the Hokage. He slipped off the Chunin vest and placed it beside the forehead protector, bowed to the Hokage and Council and walked out.

Sakumo stopped as he made it to the open door, and turned around to speak to the room, "You say I'm a traitor of my shinobi code well I say I would gladly save Ronin again. You say he would have died in honor, I say honor wouldn't have comforted his wife or children."

Sakumo turned and walked out of the room. The shinobi outside the room watched after him with wide eyes full of disbelief, the word on the street was that Sakumo had been tried as a traitor. Sakumo kept walking and didn't stop until he made it to a local bar he frequented before he was married.

He walked right up to the bartender and ordered three bottles of sake. Sakumo didn't even use a cup before downing the entire bottle.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I scrunched my nose up at the wet, cold feeling on my masked cheek. I opened one eye and saw the salt and pepper fur of Aki sitting on my chest, licking my cheek happily. I scratched her behind the ears and held her as I sat up to look around the room. Naru was still laid out on the floor with the half-eaten plate of dango beside her; I snorted and gently shook her awake. "Hmm go 'way."

I shook my head, "No; you've got to get up. We need to go to the Chunin meeting this morning."

Naru sat up, rubbed her eyes, and yawned loudly. "Do we have to?"

I laughed at her whining, "Yes we have to."

She stood up and went upstairs before coming back down, "Dad's gone again, and I think Sensei is back."

I blinked at her, "Why do you think Dad's back?"

"His bedroom door was open and his bag was in there." I ran up the stairs and into his room, his bed was slightly rumpled and when I looked in the bathroom, his dirty clothes were there. Dad was back in the Village, but why wasn't he home? I exited the bedroom and walked to mine to get dressed, I had a really bad feeling about this.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

After I made a very quick breakfast and got dressed, Kakashi and I walked to the Hokage Tower for the Chunin meeting. We hadn't been back to the Hokage Tower since our prank of the century; we figured it would be very beneficial to our health if we stayed away from the Tower for a while. I stopped on the bottom step of the stairs that led to the Hokage Tower and took a deep breath, Kakashi chuckled softly at me and waited at the next step. I scowled at him and walked the rest of the way up the stairs; we walked into the Chunin meeting room and were greeted with silence.

The moment we walked in, every conversation stopped and all eyes turned to us. I could feel my cheeks heat up as they stared, then it was like a switch was turned on, they started clapping. Kakashi glanced at me from the corner of his eye and I shrugged at his unasked question. Genma walked over to us laughing the entire way, he handed us a leaf pin and explained to us what was going on. "Everyone heard about the prank you pulled on the higher-ups, and you two have officially become the heroes of every Chunin. You showed those Jounin, with their arrogant attitudes and egos, that the Chunin are a force to be reckoned with."

Kakashi just shook his head in disbelief and I smiled sweetly at the cheering Chunin, we were making a name for ourselves, now all we needed to do was save Sakumo-sensei when the time comes.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Two weeks later…..

A knock sounded on the bedroom door and Sakumo shot out of bed; then clutched his aching head in two hands. Kakashi's voice was muffled by the door and by the severe hangover Sakumo had. "Dad? Can I come in?"

Sakumo looked in the mirror and saw his eyes were bloodshot and he looked like he hadn't bathed in days, he looked around his room and saw the empty sake bottles. As fast as he could without making himself sick, Sakumo began picking up the stray bottles and stuffing them in the closet. Kakashi and Naru had no idea about his suspension or about his alcohol problem, Sakumo had been drinking since the morning he was suspended and he really didn't want Kakashi to find out. Sakumo splashed water on his face before opening the bedroom door.

Kakashi had a troubled look in his eye before speaking, "Dad, I couldn't get rice, eggplant, sugar, or coffee from the market. They said there was a shortage because of the war, something about supply lines being cut off."

Sakumo nodded, "That's fine; did you have enough money?"

Kakashi fingered the bag in his hand before suddenly finding the floor very interesting, "That's the thing, the shopkeepers ran up the prices when I went to checkout. Dad what's going on?"

Sakumo closed his eyes and took the bags from Kakashi, "Go train Kakashi. I'll see you later."

Kakashi blinked, "But Dad I...,"

"Now Kakashi, do as I told you and go train." Kakashi went to speak again, but closed his mouth and headed out the door.

Sakumo dropped the bags to the ground and rested his back against the cool surface of his bedroom wall, his body slowly slid down the wall and soon he found himself sitting on the hardwood floor. He cradled his head in his hands; Konoha was finally feeling the brunt of his failure. The food shortages weren't the only thing they were experiencing though, more shinobi were dying on the battlefield and that hurt Sakumo the most. He felt helpless and useless, Minato was on another three week mission and more shinobi were leaving to war and all of it was because he didn't burn Fort Kei to the ground.

A loud shout came from outside the house, almost like a chanting, Sakumo peered out the window to see a single male Chunin with tears running down his face. "You dirty traitor! She's dead because of you! She's dead because of you!" Sakumo ducked down as a rock flew through his bedroom window and landed beside the bed. Sakumo stood up and dragged himself into the bathroom to take a shower. He needed to at least attempt to train Naru and Kakashi but he didn't want the kids to see him like this.

He was going into the Village for the first time in two weeks, since the war had heated up, it wasn't safe or sane for him to be seen in public, he had become the official martyr of Konoha.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I sat in the training grounds with Naru, she was picking at a blade of grass and trying not to bother me, I had asked her to let me have some alone time. I had a pretty good idea of why Dad was acting the way he was, he had chosen to save his comrade over completing the mission. He was doing his hardest to hide it from Naru and me, but honestly even if we didn't have insider information from the future, we were bright enough to notice that he hadn't gone on a mission in two weeks or trained for that matter.

I sighed and ran a hand through my hair; it was different this time around though. Dad was actually pushing me away, before he had all but begged me to stay with him, but now he actually sent me out of the house. I didn't like this turn of events, another thing that bothered me was the alcohol. The other time Dad didn't turn to alcohol, now he was drinking it like water and trying to hide it from me. Naru didn't know about the alcohol but she knew that something was off with him.

I sighed again and lay on the ground and watched the clouds, Dad hadn't come out and told Naru and I yet about the mission, nor had anyone else mentioned it. I'm not saying I didn't get glares from the Villagers and Shinobi, but no one has actually come out and said anything to me. I just want to save him this time around; I don't think I can make it without him this time. I had to go about this as I would a mission, I mentally smiled before giving my personal mission a title; Mission Save Sakumo was underway.

I turned to Naru, "Hey I think Dad failed that mission."

Naru closed her eyes and nodded, "I thought so too. He's just acting too different. What are we going to do?"

I absentmindedly plucked apart a blade of grass, "I don't know. I'm willing to do just about anything, cry, beg, yell, anything Naru."

I looked away from her and into the big blue sky and in a lower tone of voice, let her hear just how much it affected me. "I just want to save him Naru. I can't let him die this time around."

I heard her sigh, "Well we have to show Sensei that you need him. I would say let's get you injured or maybe sick. Give him a reason to have to take care of you, so that he can see he's needed."

I nodded, "I think I can do that, maybe I could talk to him about my mom or make up nightmares about him leaving."

Naru stood up and walked over to me and stood above me, blocking the sun from my eyes, "We'll figure something out, I don't want to lose him either. He's a part of my family now."

I smiled up at her, "Thanks Naru."

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I winked at Kakashi before telling him it was no big deal. I reached down and held my hand out in front of him, "Come on, let's go save Sakumo-sensei!"

"Why would you need to save that traitor?"

I quickly whipped around and saw Rafu-sensei standing on the outskirts of the training ground. Kakashi stood beside me and I could see him clenching and unclenching his fists. "My father is not a traitor!"

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo watched from his perch in the tree, he had gotten to the training grounds at the same time Rafu had. He always suspected Rafu was up to no good whenever he took an interest in Kakashi or Naru, so he waited to see what the man would do. He blinked in surprise when Kakashi defended him, the boy didn't even know what he had done and he was still blindly defending his father. Sakumo sighed before watching the scene in front of him, public opinion of him was decreasing.

He knew that, even though he hadn't been seen in the Village since he came back, once the Council was adjourned the news had spread like wildfire and at first no one gave it a second thought. Then the food shortages started, well actually all shortages including clothes and shoes started, and people started dying.

The war had turned bloody fast and according to the Council and all of Konoha, it was Sakumo's fault. Rafu was having fun with this turn of events, and his speeches in the middle of the market only added to the hostility towards Sakumo.

Poor Sakumo never had a chance, not only had the Civilians turned on him, but the ninjas were beginning to turn on him. With every new deployment team of ten shinobi, three would return home injured to the point of death, two would return home limping and five wouldn't come home at all. Konoha was losing badly, they didn't have enough shinobi to fight and those that were still fighting were being exhausted from the endless fighting.

Sakumo closed his eyes and listened to the confrontation below; hoping Rafu would keep his big mouth shut.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

Rafu snarled at me, "Of course he's a traitor boy or have you not noticed the changes in the village?"

I growled back at him, of course I had noticed the changes in the village. We were having shortages because our supply lines were being attacked and more shinobi were coming back dead or injured. I wasn't blind, but we weren't supposed to know about the failed mission yet. I would have to play dumb for the time being. "Yes I've noticed the changes but that has nothing to do with my Dad."

Rafu took a step forward to intimidate me, but I stood my ground and glared at him, "Your father betrayed Konoha by failing his-"

"Rafu stop!"

I blinked and saw Dad had entered the clearing. "Well look who we have here, it's the traitor himself. You haven't told them yet Sakumo?"

Dad looked away from Rafu and at us, "Go home you two."

Rafu barked out his laughter, "So not only are you are traitor, you're a coward."

Dad went stiff and growled low in his throat before tackling Rafu to the ground and holding him down, "I may be a lot of things, but I'm no coward. Leave them alone or else." Dad stood up and pointed in the direction of the house and we obediently followed.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

Sakumo-sensei followed behind us and sat down with us at the kitchen table when we returned back to the house. His eyes were cloudy, but steady as he began speaking to us. "I wish Rafu would have kept his mouth shut, but since he didn't, I have something to tell you two. My last mission was a failure."

I tilted my head before asking him a question, "So? Missions have been failed before."

Sensei shook his head, "Not missions like this. I was given strict orders to not fail the mission and I did."

Kakashi was quiet, I could tell by the abnormally pale color of his skin, that his worst nightmare had just come true. "But Dad, that doesn't make you a traitor."

Sakumo sighed, "The Council said I was a traitor of my shinobi code. I broke the rules and now I must suffer the consequences."

I folded my hands across my lap, "Sensei? What did you do?"

He looked out the window before answering, "I can't give you specifics, but I placed my comrade's life before my mission."

I looked at Kakashi and he nodded his head slightly, we were going to save him from his depression, even if it killed us. "I don't see anything wrong with that Dad."

Sakumo-sensei gave Kakashi a gentle smile before shaking his head, "Hundreds of people will now die because my decision. I've also been suspended from shinobi duty for the next four weeks."

I tried to give him a small smile, "Then everything will go back to normal right?"

Sensei shrugged his shoulders, "I don't know Naru, I just don't know."

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo sat in his room with the door locked, nursing his fifth cup of sake. He was feeling the buzz very nicely and could almost forget about his troubles, but right before they would all go away his mind would bring him back to that mission. He closed his eyes and downed the last of the cup, before pouring himself another one.

Kakashi and Naru were endangering themselves by sticking with him; he didn't know how far the villagers or the shinobi would go to get back at him. He needed to push them far away from him so they wouldn't be burned by his decision. Sakumo tipped back the sake bottle and emptied it into his stomach, tomorrow he would shut them out so far that they would run from him.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

Naru and I sat in my room planning out our course of action. We would cling to Dad worse than static and do everything in our power to not let him get depressed. I had decided that I would find the sake stash and Naru would find little ways to cheer him up, she always had that affect on people anyways.

I sighed, "I think I might need to fake a nightmare tonight."

Naru nodded and I stood to walk out of the door and down the hall, Dad's door seemed many times bigger as I stood before it. I gently knocked before waiting. Dad came and cracked the door, the smell of sake was strong on his breath, "W-what Kakashi?"

I bit my lip, "I had a nightmare."

He blinked before opening his door and as I took a step forward he stopped me, "Don't you think you're a little too old to need to sleep with me after a nightmare?"

I took a step back and stared into his eyes, what was he doing? "Dad?"

He sighed before kneeling to my level, "Go get back in bed and go to sleep or go fix you some tea. You can do it."

I stiffly nodded and watched as he turned and closed the door behind him. With a gentle click, the door was locked. I returned to my bedroom and looked at Naru in shock, "He sent me back to my room. He didn't even ask if I was okay."

Naru stood up and did something I was still trying to get use to, she hugged me. "We'll figure something out Scarecrow. Maybe he's doing this to try and push us away."

I slowly relaxed into her hug and nodded, "From what I can remember, the other time he tried to cling to me but I was so upset and angry that I pushed him away. It's just my luck that we had to switch places."

She laughed against my shoulder before letting go. "Let's sleep on it Kakashi, we'll figure something out in the morning." I nodded and watched her leave the room.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo closed the door, locked it, and sank to his knees.

It had hurt pushing Kakashi away like that, but if he didn't then he would forever be associated with Sakumo's failure, his disgrace.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I woke Kakashi up and began cooking breakfast, making sure to make French toast which was Sensei's favorite. We had a little amount of sugar so I only had enough to make a couple of pieces and once they were cooked, we waited. Thirty minutes later Sensei came down the stairs with bloodshot eyes and a wobble in his step. He looked at both, grabbed a plate and went into his study. Kakashi abruptly stood up, "Dad!"

Sensei stopped and turned to him, "Yeah?"

"Are you going to train with us today?"

He held Kakashi with his piercing gaze before shaking his head, "Go train with Genma or Raido."

Then he entered the study and shut the door. I walked over to Kakashi and placed a hand on his shoulder, "Maybe it's the alcohol."

He shrugged and sat back at the table, "Maybe."

I chewed on my lip before thinking of another plan, "Are you allergic to anything Kakashi?"

He raised an eyebrow at me before answering, "Yeah I'm allergic to peanut butter."

I turned to openly gape at him, "You're allergic to peanut butter?!"

He shrugged, "So? It's not a bad allergic reaction; I just break out into hives."

I smiled sweetly before making a clone and sending it to the store for some peanut butter. Once the clone returned Kakashi watched as I got out a knife and stuck it into the peanut butter. "What are you going to do Naru?"

I smiled before taking his arm and pushing the sleeve up to his shoulder before covering his arm in the peanut butter. He shivered at the coldness before twitching as his skin reacted with the peanut butter. I smiled again before putting some on his other arm and letting it set. By now I could see angry redness underneath the light brown of the peanut butter, his pale skin made the marks glow.

I washed the peanut butter off and sent him to Sakumo-sensei, I heard a slight laugh before Sensei left the study and handed Kakashi a tube of cream. Kakashi came back glaring at me, "No more playing around with my allergies."

I laughed and helped soothe the itching skin with the cream.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

As Naru helped put the itching cream on my skin, I got a brilliant idea. "Naru since Dad's in the study, let's go see if we can find his sake stash in his room."

She smirked, "I'll make a clone to be lookout and we can search his room."

We nodded and got to work, using the stealth we had been improving with each prank, we made our way up the stairs and into Dad's room. Naru began searching the closet and I searched the bathroom. We both came out at the same time and sighed, "Nothing."

Naru began looking underneath the bed and I looked underneath the end table, still nothing. I sighed but when I did, Naru's eyes widened, "My clone dispelled itself; he's coming up the stairs."

I heard the footsteps of my father coming up the stairs and began looking for a hiding spot. "Naru chakra!"

She nodded and we both suppressed our chakra and I pushed Naru into the closet. Dad entered just a few short seconds later, he stopped and searched the room before sighing and heading into the bathroom. Naru let out a sigh of relief before stretching and turning to me. I was tempted to laugh at her, but Dad returned from the bathroom and exited the bathroom.

I let out a sigh of relief only to groan when Dad called out to us, "If you two are through playing hide and seek I really need to change clothes." I sighed before helping Naru out of the closet.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo downed another bottle of sake and watched the people outside his house from his bedroom window, they were throwing stuff again. Sakumo only left the house for sake, to watch Naru and Kakashi in secret, and to clean off the mess from the front of the house.

It was littered with painted-on words and kunai marks, grieving families craved their dead loved one's names onto the wood of his front porch. Sakumo took it all in stride, he just didn't care anymore. He had almost successfully pushed Kakashi and Naru away, but would secretly watch them train.

It pained him to cut them out, but he had to protect them.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

Naru stopped and glared back at the civilian woman, "That's fine! We didn't want to eat here anyway."

I sighed, that was the third restaurant we had been kicked out of today. "Come on Naru, we'll just go get ramen."

She huffed but left with me, a tomato flew from behind a bench and landed at my feet, "Konoha would be better off without the Hatake scum here."

Naru glared and yelled back, "Come on chicken show yourself!"

I placed a hand on her shoulder, "Don't Naru, let's just go train okay?"

She nodded and walked beside me, the glares and curses were ignored by us both as we walked down the road. A Chunin appeared beside us, "Kakashi, you've been summoned to the Hokage Tower, please follow me."

I blinked before nodding and following him, I was too caught up in my own thoughts to notice that he wasn't taking me in the direction of the Hokage Tower but instead he was taking me down a darkened alley. The Chunin grabbed my arm roughly and pushed me forward; I lashed out and kicked backwards as two more sets of hands grabbed my arms. They were taller than me, judging from how my feet now dangled in the air, and judging from the strong grip that would leave bruises on my arms, they were strong.

One of the Chunin got right in my face and stroke my cheek mockingly, "Ya know, a couple of weeks ago you were the pride of the village. Look how far you've fallen because of your father."

I growled and kicked the man to my left; the man in front of me backhanded me across the face. My head snapped to the side before the Chunin grabbed my jaw and made me look at him. I could see there were four men, all at least nineteen years old and all were Chunin level. I realized at that moment that I was screwed.

The Chunin in front of me yanked down my mask before sneering at me, "Such a pretty baby face, I wonder how pretty it'll be all black and blue?"

I watched in slow motion as his fist got closer and closer to my face, it connected solidly with my jaw and I let out a pain filled yelp. He brought his hand back again and hit me on the other side, I would be bruised tomorrow.

The Chunin that wasn't doing anything came behind me and clasped a hand over my mouth; no one would hear me over the meaty thickness of his hand. Angrily my thoughts blamed my father for this, he was the reason this was happening to me. I gasped in surprise as I realized what I had thought, that wasn't true and I knew it.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I watched Kakashi follow behind the Chunin, I couldn't help but wonder why the Hokage wanted to see only Kakashi. I shook my head and walked in the same direction, but as I went to venture left and into the direction of the training grounds, I heard Kakashi yelp.

I instantly turned around and looked for him, I heard the sound of flesh hitting flesh and ran towards it, just in time to see Kakashi bite the fire out of the Chunin that was holding his mouth shut. The Chunin yelped and knocked Kakashi on the back of the head, the other Chunin let go of his arms and Kakashi tumbled to the ground.

He landed on his feet and instantly began attacking them; I ran over there and helped him take down one as the others ran away. I winced as I saw his face; it was swollen and already bruising. "We need to tell Sensei about this."

Kakashi shook his head, "I'm going home. Please Naru, don't tell Dad." I followed after him, shooting worried glances to his back the entire way.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo watched as Kakashi stormed into the house, but there was something different this time around. Naru ran in afterwards and sent him a very worried look before calling after Kakashi. "Kakashi!"

Sakumo sighed before looking at Naru, "What happened?"

She shook her head, "Ask Kakashi."

Sakumo walked up the stairs and listened to the running water in the bathroom; he walked over and knocked on the door. "Kakashi? Are you okay?"

There wasn't a sound coming from the bathroom except the running water. Sakumo sighed and opened the bathroom door to see his son's swollen face. All pretense of trying to push Kakashi away flew out the window after he saw the damage to his son's face. He shot forward and clutched Kakashi to his chest as he inspected the injuries. "What happened son?"

Kakashi mumbled out an answer against his swollen skin, "Training accident."

Sakumo sighed, "It doesn't look like a training accident. I can always tell when you're lying and right now you're lying. Tell me the truth son."

Kakashi was silent as Sakumo placed a cold rag over the swollen cheeks and eyes; they would be black and blue tomorrow. "Well it's a good thing you wear a mask or this would be hard to explain."

Naru ran into the bathroom and winced at the damage, "Is it bad Sensei?"

He shook his head, "Nothing that can't be fixed. What happened?"

Naru whimpered and clamped her lips shut. Sakumo sighed and turned back to Kakashi, "Please Ka-chan tell me the truth."

Kakashi stiffened and finally told him, "I was attacked by four adult Chunin today."

Sakumo froze and closed his eyes, "Naru, take Kakashi to the hospital and see if there is anything broken." Naru nodded and Kakashi, for once, didn't protest.

Sakumo was furious, as soon as he heard the front door close, Sakumo went into his bedroom. His hands shook slightly and he needed something to steady them, he quickly pulled back the bedspread and grabbed the near empty bottle of sake. He swirled the alcohol around before drinking it in one go. His son, his baby, had been hit because of his actions. Sakumo sat on the bed and cradled his head in his hands; life was not going the way he had originally planned.

Here he was, twenty-seven years old, on the verge of becoming an alcoholic, and completely disgraced. His hands found another bottle and another; he stumbled into his bathroom and looked at the man in the mirror. He was just a shadow of his former self, his eyes were constantly bloodshot, his hands shook unless he had alcohol in his system, and his constant shutting off of his son was taking its toll on him emotionally.

Sakumo snarled at the man in the mirror, blaming him for everything. That man was the reason Kakashi was hurt, that man was the reason Konoha was suffering, that man was the reason good shinobi were dying, and Sakumo knew he had to get rid of that man. In the haze of an alcohol induced stupor, Sakumo reared back his fist and connected with the glass of the mirror. Blood and broken glass rained across the bathroom counter and across his bleeding knuckles, the pain made his mind sharp as he realized with a sinking realization what he had done.

He cradled his hand to his chest and stumbled back into the bedroom and poured the sake across the wound, it stung but worked. He downed the rest and stumbled back into the bathroom to take a shower.

Sakumo sighed against the hot water of the shower and braced his hands against the wall; his mind was still full of alcohol and pain. He closed his eyes and opened them after he heard a noise from the bathroom. He blinked before straightening up and reaching to the shower curtain and as he heard the gentle humming of a female voice, he pulled the curtains back to see Nozomi standing at the counter.

She turned and smiled at him before fading out of view, Sakumo stumbled forward and tried to grab her hand but she was gone. Sakumo sat, cold and naked on the bathroom floor, cursing his hallucinations, because for a moment everything was alright. Now it was all back to being bad, Sakumo stood and pulled on clothes, not bothering to even dry off, and stormed into the bedroom.

He began tossing things, slamming drawers, tearing bed sheets off of the bed, and throwing empty sake bottles at his invisible demons. He sloppily threw an empty bottle in the direction of the end table. A crashed filled the room that was quickly followed by the cracking of glass. Sakumo's heavy pants bounced off of the walls as he walked over to the other side of the table, he blinked before reaching down and cradling the now broken picture in his hands.

His hands shook as he looked at the picture; it was the last family picture they had taken together, only now the glass was broken. What unnerved Sakumo the most was that the crack in the glass ran perfectly down the middle of the picture, effectively cutting Sakumo off from his family in the picture. He dropped the picture onto the bed and sat down beside it, when did his life go so downhill?

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

The nurse sighed as she gently poked Kakashi's cheek before sighing, "It's not broken, the tissue is just swollen. Put some ice on it and you should be fine."

I chewed on my bottom lip as Kakashi thanked her and hoped down from the bed. "He looked angry."

Kakashi nodded, "I know, let's get home Naru. Maybe he'll be okay when we get home." I nodded and followed him out, hoping that he was still alive when we got there.

Three days later, Kakashi's face finally healed, and today we finally found someone to train with. Raido and Genma actually sought us out and asked to train; they apparently held no grudge against my sensei. "How is Sakumo-san?"

Kakashi sighed, "He's alive."

I looked at Kakashi, hearing the secret relief in those words. I smiled and turned to the other two, "Well let's get started!"

The boys laughed before teaming off, Kakashi waiting for me. I got into a stance when a new voice entered the clearing, "Well look here, it's the traitor's brat and student. I bet they've come to poison the other's minds."

Kakashi quickly turned around and growled, "My father is not a traitor."

I stood beside him and nodded in agreement, Genma and Raido stood on either side of us. All of our eyes trained on one person, Etsu.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Etsu sneered at the group before her; all four of them were losers in her eyes, Raido for not being as good as his brother, Naru for being Sakumo's student, Kakashi for being Sakumo's son and Genma for actually being friends with Raido.

She looked to her side and motioned her head forward for her friends to come out, "Suzume, Aoba, Aimi, come see what I've found."

Three more figures appeared from the opening of the clearing. Kakashi instantly recognized Suzume as the Academy teacher from the future that taught flower arranging, she still had the same black kind of curly hair.

He was slightly surprised to see Aoba with the evil Etsu. The sunglasses wearing Tokubetsu Jounin was a whole lot nicer in the future, well at least he matured over time. Aimi was the most special member of the group; her pale eyes marked her as a Hyuga.

Apparently Etsu had connections, regardless of her snotty attitude.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I watched Etsu walk forward and get right in Kakashi's face. "So how does it feel to know your Dad's a traitor?"

I could practically hear Kakashi grind his teeth against each other in restraint. "That he practically whored himself out to Iwa by failing his mission on purpose. I heard that your entire family has been helping Iwa the entire time."

Kakashi clenched his fists and slowly breathed in and out. "Etsu, leave me alone. You shouldn't listen to petty rumors."

Etsu backed up, sneering the entire time, "I heard your momma was a whore that died from a drug overdose."

Kakashi froze and raced forward, "I told you to shut up!"

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo watched the scene before him on the training ground, his heart breaking with every hurtful word from the girls' mouth. Kakashi was trying his best to not kill the girl, Sakumo admired that control he had, but every control breaks eventually.

Kakashi proved that when the little brat talked bad about Nozomi, Sakumo had to restrain himself from ripping the girl apart. He watched as all at once everything became a free for all, Aimi raced towards Kakashi to block his attack towards Etsu. Raido and Genma instantly took on Aoba and Suzume. Etsu was left for Naru, the two girls stared each other down before attacking with fast and furious punches.

Naru kicked the girl off of her and began yelling for everyone to stop. All of the fights ended abruptly as Naru began talking, "This isn't the way we work things out! We are shinobi and can deal with this in a civilized way."

Kakashi was holding his arm to his chest while Genma and Raido were in a defensive position in front of Suzume and Aoba. Naru was too busy watching them to notice Etsu sneak behind her, "Oh Naru."

Naru turned around and was met with a fist to the nose. A sickening crunch filled the clearing and blood poured from her nose. Kakashi was across the field in seconds, grabbing Etsu by her shirt with his uninjured arm, "Why you little-"

"That's enough Kakashi." Kakashi blinked and looked to see Sakumo walking into the clearing.

Sakumo saw that Naru's nose was bleeding badly and was most likely broken; he sighed and ordered Etsu and her group to go home before he reported them to the Hokage. They disappeared out of the clearing. Genma and Raido walked over to Naru and tried to help her stop the bleeding; Kakashi walked over and winced, "I think it's broken."

Sakumo knelt before Naru and looked at it, "Yeah I'm sure it is too, take her to the hospital and let them look at it. Minato's back Naru, after you get back from the hospital come to the house and get your stuff so you can spend the night with him." Naru nodded and went with Kakashi and the others.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

My eyes watered as the blood continued to pour out of my nose and as the pain pulsed in time with my heart beat. Kakashi tried to eye smile at me before helping me into the hospital. The nurse took one look at me, sighed and grabbed my hand. After some careful prodding from the doctor he informed me that he needed to set the bone so it'll grow back straight.

They waited for the pain medication to kick in before grabbing my abused nose and twisting. I let out a yelp as the bones reconnected in my face, the doctor gave me a small smile and told me that all I would need to do was not touch it and everything would be fine.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo returned home, walked right past the fresh carvings and into the house. He closed the door behind him and headed upstairs, all he wanted was a drink. He wanted to forget everything; he wanted all of his troubles to leave. He grabbed two bottles from his secret stash and headed back downstairs. He placed the bottles on the kitchen table and looked at them, his entire being had been reduced to drinking his pain away.

He closed his eyes and grabbed the bottle, once more the liquid burned its way down his throat, corroding his liver and settling heavily in his stomach. He could no longer get a light buzz with just one bottle, he now needed two or three to get the light buzz that made him feel good. Of course afterwards he felt ten times worse but for just a little bit he was okay, he could forget. Sakumo downed the other bottle and paced the room. His student had been attacked because of him; his son had been attacked because of him, how many more of his precious people were going to be attacked because of him?

He let out a heavy breath and walked into the living room, his eyes landing on his tanto. It hadn't moved from its spot since he had gotten suspended. He reached for it and grasped it in his hands; honor was such a simple word. Five little letters described a man and his entire life work, honor. Sakumo no longer had honor, the Hatake family no longer had honor and all of this because of a decision Sakumo can't make himself regret.

He walked back into the kitchen and placed the tanto on the table in front of him. He grabbed another bottle of sake from the refrigerator that was kept for visitors and began slowly drinking from the bottle.

The front door swung open and Naru headed upstairs to get her a bag ready, Kakashi walked into the kitchen and froze.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I couldn't believe the scene before me. It was eerie; Dad was sitting in a darkened room, drinking from a bottle of sake with his prized tanto sitting unsheathed on the table. For a moment I saw the perfect picture of insanity.

I whimpered unconsciously, I was so close to losing him. Nothing I was doing was working, he had just given up. I was beginning to realize that he loved the bottle more than me. Naru and I had tried to find his secret stash of sake, but we couldn't find it no matter how much we searched. "Dad?"

He looked at me, but focused on the wall above my head, never meeting my eyes. I chewed on my bottom lip and walked forward to him, with every step echoing off the wooden floor. I was right beside him when I looked into his eyes and wrapped my arms around him, instead of returning the hug he stiffened in my arms. I wanted to cry at the injustice of it all, was this how Dad felt in the other time line when I wouldn't let him hug me? "Kakashi, go play with Aki. She's been whining for someone to pick her up all day."

Naru came downstairs and wished us a good night; she was excited to spend the night with Minato-sensei. She had really missed him. Dad sat at the table and continued to drink while I decided to make supper; I placed the miso ramen on the table and ate mine.

Dad didn't even touch his. I sighed and continued eating when the soft thud of kunai hitting wood caught my attention. I heard the shouts coming from outside and looked out the window to see a crowd forming outside the house. They were calling my Dad a traitor and cursing his name. A rock shot through the window beside me and the shouts became clearer. Dad stood beside me and gently pushed me away from the window as a Chunin shouted that my father would be better off dead.

"The whole lot of you can just die!"

"Hasn't Konoha suffered enough from you Hatakes?"

"Just die Sakumo!"

"Traitor!"

I looked into his eyes; he had finally looked at me. I tried to smile at him before grasping his larger hand with my smaller one. I whimpered as the shouts became angrier and louder, all calling for my father's death.

I took my other arm and wrapped it around his leg, the top of my head barely reaching his hip, and whispered into his pant leg. "Please don't listen to them. Please stay with me."

If he heard my quiet pleadings, he gave no indication. I squeezed his hand once more before heading upstairs and getting into bed, but I didn't sleep. I was too afraid that if I did, I would wake up an orphan.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo listened to the shouts well into the night; way after Kakashi finally went to bed. Their words getting angrier and angrier with each passing minute, but as he listened to them he began thinking of their advice. Perhaps he should just die, if the disgrace was gone then Kakashi couldn't be associated with it, nor could Naru.

If he died, then they would stop targeting the kids, Konoha would be a better place if he was dead.

At that moment, while his only child sat uneasily in bed, Sakumo made his decision in a mind befuddled with alcohol and grief. He had been called a traitor, a murderer, and even a coward, but Hatake Sakumo knew what he had to do.

Taking a bottle of sake with him, he entered his study and quickly began searching through the books on his shelf till he found the one he was looking for. His eyes scanned the page before a sincere smile graced his face, he would bring honor back to the Hatake name; his own god-forsaken name would be purged from the disgrace that he had reaped upon it. His eyes bore into the book, memorizing the words and everything they stood for, "Seppuku, the honorable suicide."

Hatake Sakumo sat down and wrote out his death poem; tomorrow he would give Kakashi one final day with his dad. Tomorrow Sakumo would live without the iron stronghold of alcohol, tomorrow he would hold his head high as if he never failed his mission.

After tomorrow Hatake Sakumo would be no more.


	18. Chapter 16

**Chapter 16**

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Lightning crashed outside the window and Kakashi was instantly jolted from sleep, he steadied his breathing before looking around the room and seeing nothing but darkness. Something was off, though he couldn't quite put his finger on what it was, he knew something was different. The room seemed colder and lonelier, almost like something had removed the warmth from the room. Kakashi rolled onto his stomach and attempted to go back to sleep, but the nagging feeling in the back of his mind wouldn't let him. The sinking desperation in his stomach was trying to remind him of something, he felt like he shouldn't have been doing something. Kakashi sighed before snuggling against the pillow, he'd remember in the morning when he woke up. His eyes popped open at that thought; he wasn't supposed to be sleeping.

Kakashi fought against the covers on his bed and ignored the cold floors as he raced down the hall and down the stairs. His heart pumped adrenaline into his body, his breaths were coming out short and heavy, fear gripped his heart. He wasn't supposed to fall asleep because he was so afraid his dad would kill himself while he slept. Kakashi prayed he wasn't too late; he stopped before the closed door of his father's study. A small hand touched the cold door and gently pushed the door open; the air rushed into the hall and froze Kakashi in his tracks. Tears welled in the young shinobi's eyes as he recognized the smell of death, a single candle burned in the middle of the room. A dark substance surrounded the burning candle and a dark form was hunched over beside the candle, just out of the glow of the light. Kakashi didn't need a light to know what that form was though; he whimpered and tears freely fell from his eyes as he walked closer. Failure and depression set into his body as he realized he had failed to save his father. Kakashi felt like a child younger than his seven years as he walked closer to Sakumo and his eyes adjusted enough for him to see the body of his father.

A trembling hand reached down to touch the corpse, refusing to believe he hadn't been able to save him. His dad was just playing, he wasn't really dead, but with a touch of the cold body, Kakashi knew the truth. Kakashi didn't even try to stop the tears that now soaked into his shirt and onto the floor, mixing with the blood of his father. He dropped to his knees, letting his pajama pants soak up the blood, and wrapped his arms around his father. He ignored the feeling of his father's stiff body already showing signs of rigor mortis, and kept holding on as if his tears could bring back his father, no, his daddy. He didn't want his father, he wanted his daddy.

The trembling entered his entire body as his sobs racked through his frame, and his words died on his lips. He closed his eyes and gently let his hands fall from the body, he stood and went to blow out the candle, but before he could make it, a hand grabbed his ankle. Fear bubbled inside of Kakashi as he slowly turned to see the pale hand was connected to a long arm jutting from the dark, dead form. His father's blood smeared face grinning at him before tugging him down, Kakashi screamed.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I jolted out of bed. The dreams were getting worse, and that last one seemed almost too real to be true. I took a deep breath before realizing that one thing about the dream was true, I wasn't supposed to be sleeping. I know it seems silly, but I truly did fear going to sleep because I don't want to wake up with him lying dead on the study floor. I looked outside and saw the darkness of the sky before walking down the hall; I had to make sure he was still there. I paused outside his bedroom door and listened intently to the sound of breathing from inside the room. My heartbeat returned to normal pace and I let out a sigh of relief, he was still alive. I hadn't failed yet. A yawn worked its way through my body and I stretched the kinks out of my muscles, another hour or two of sleep would do me good but I wasn't going to chance it.

The sound of paws hitting hardwood caught my attention as Aki walked down the hall and sniffed against my leg, she barked slightly and gently nibbled on my big toe. I smiled before reaching down and picking her up and taking her back to my room. I closed the door and placed her on the bed before climbing up beside her and scratching her behind the ears, she made a whimpering sound and playfully wagged her tail as I scratched her ears and belly. Aki gave a small bark before hoping into my lap and trying to lick my face; I laughed and picked her up to look her in the eyes. We stared at each other for a moment then she licked the tip of my nose, I snorted and placed her back on the bed. She went over to the pillow and began gnawing on it. From the way she was chewing on everything in sight, I figured she was going to start teething soon.

I picked her up and opened her mouth to see her gums; yep they were red and looking a little bit sore. She whimpered again, but this time it wasn't a happy whimper, it was more pain filled. "Don't worry Aki; I'll get you something to help with your teething." She tilted her head to look at me as I put her on the ground and walked out of the room. If there was one thing Dad taught me, it was dog care. I guess it came from having a summoning contract with the dogs; I honestly couldn't wait to summon the dogs once more. Since we returned to this time I didn't have the summoning contract and wasn't able to summon my faithful companions, it was like a part of me was missing.

I walked into the bathroom and took out a rag and held it under the cold water. Once the rag was wet I rung it out and returned to my room, Aki was chewing on a sandal on the corner. I laughed before placing the rag in front of her, she sniffed it before bringing it to her mouth and before long she was having the time of her life chewing away at the cold rag. I patted her head once more before getting into the bed, "That should help you Aki." I rested my back against the wall and meditated on everything that was happening; I had a really bad feeling about tomorrow.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Minato looked at his daughter as she cried into his lap, after she broke all of the plates by throwing them against the wall. He hugged her closer and listened to her angry words, she wasn't crying because of the dishes, she was crying because of the injustice of how the villagers and shinobi were treating Sakumo. Minato closed his eyes and let Naru calm down, he hadn't heard about Sakumo's mission until after he got into Konoha. He immediately recognized the shortages in the marketplace, but with a war those were to be expected. It wasn't until he heard them actually cursing a name whenever a vendor didn't have a particular food that he realized something else was wrong. He immediately made his way to the Hokage Tower and pretty much demanded to know what was going on from the Third.

Sarutobi Hiruzen had looked years older in his Hokage robes as he explained the Sakumo situation to Minato and told him that he couldn't do anything because the Council thought the punishment was just. Minato couldn't believe the Hokage couldn't do something and he told the man that. The Third could only sigh before asking Minato what he would have done in Sakumo's situation. Minato told him the truth; he would have made the same decision as Sakumo. With a soft smile the Third agreed that he too would have saved Ronin's life.

Naru was quiet, which broke Minato from his thoughts. He gently lifted her into his arms and took her to the bedroom that would be hers if she ever moved in with him. He sat her on the bed and noticed that she wasn't asleep yet. He poked her forehead, "Hey I don't give out free rides. You were supposed to be asleep."

She just stared at him, her nose was slightly bruised but it had healed remarkably fast and Minato wondered if that was another part of her bloodlimit. Naru took a couple of deep breath before telling her father what was really bothering her, "Daddy, you'll help Sakumo-sensei right? He needs someone to show him that his decision wasn't a bad one. He won't listen to Kakashi and me."

Minato nodded before pushing Naru to lie down, "I'll go talk to him, if you promise not to break any more dishes."

A blush raced across Naru's features and she smiled sweetly, "Sorry about that."

He waved it off, "I understand how upset you are; so don't worry about it." Minato tucked her into bed and quietly left the room as Naru closed her eyes.

He had a job to do.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I waited until Dad was out of the room before sitting up in bed and staring out the window, tomorrow night would be a full moon. I sighed and traced the grooves in the wood of the wall beside the bed as I thought back over the last few hours. I was angry with myself; I had just up and left Kakashi without a second glance because I was so thrilled to have my Dad back in Konoha. I was also angry with the other inhabitants of Konoha; they were disrespecting my Sensei by cursing his name and yelling at him to die.

I could hear their angry shouts from inside the kitchen when I was drying dishes and in my anger I began throwing dishes against the wall. Dad finally wrestled the last one away from me before asking what was wrong; I finally got the chance to tell him about everything. I did not tell him about the alcohol though; I figured that was a very private matter that only Sakumo-sensei could mention to anybody.

After the entire story came out, Dad had informed me that he knew a little bit about the villager's view of Sakumo and how much he disagreed with the Council's decision to suspend Sakumo. He also disagreed with the backlash Sakumo was facing because of it; he did doubt though that they would do anything stupid. I had yet to tell him the real reason my nose was broken or about Kakashi getting beat up by the Chunin, that was information that could wait until later. I gently touched my nose, the fox was healing at a slower rate since he was asleep, but he was still healing me faster than normal human healing rate.

I sighed and got out of bed to pace the floor, my mind was reeling and I needed to think of some type of plan to keep Sensei alive.

"Kit"

I blinked in surprise as I heard a very sleepy voice talk to me that I hadn't heard in a long time. "Well Foxy-chan's still alive, how's the nap going?"

I heard a snarl that broke into a yawn, "I'm going to ignore that comment brat. I have something to tell you and you're not going to like it."

I mentally sighed, "What?"

Everything was quiet before he spoke again, "I just want you to remember your mission, to save Konoha from destruction. That doesn't mean Hatake Sakumo is a part of this mission."

My eyes widened as I argued with the Fox, "Kyuubi, he has to be a part of the mission or we wouldn't have been sent back this far!"

The Fox was silent once more before speaking, "I know, but you can only help those that want to be helped and from what I've seen he doesn't want to be helped. You and the other brat are going to be in for a tough road coming up and Sakumo's help would smooth some of that road, but in the end, regardless of his fate, you two have a job and can't dwell on this. I only mention it because both of you are running yourselves ragged trying to save him."

I nodded my head, "Kyuubi, is Sakumo going to die?"

The Fox was silent before answering, "There are two possibilities Naru, he has to make a choice and that will be his decision, but to answer your question yes he, like all humans, will eventually die. No one lives forever."

He broke off the connection, I figured from sleep deprivation, and I chewed over his words. I rolled my eyes and continued to think up plans; we weren't going to let Sensei die without fighting death tooth and nail. I smirked into the silent room, I had found happiness and I wasn't letting my second father-figure go that easily.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Danzo tapped his fingers against his metal desk in his underground office. He was patiently waiting for the report from his shinobi; for the past four weeks Danzo has kept a steady watch over Hatake Sakumo and the two young Chunin that lived in the house, the little girl especially. His Root ANBU never got really close to the Hatake residence because of the ninken that resided there, but they were constantly being watched from afar. It also helped that his shinobi had many different talents that made them unique. The man waited quietly, never once letting his emotions show on his face, and thought over his plans for the future. He had single handedly established Root after his loss to Hiruzen for the Third Hokage position and his ninja were perfect. They never showed emotion and always completed their missions, they were the perfect tools. A knock sounded on the door and Danzo commanded the person to enter, a young man walked into the office and bowed before Danzo. Without removing his mask, the man gave his report, "Hatake Sakumo has made arrangements to commit Seppuku, Danzo-sama."

If this news made Danzo happy, he didn't show it, "What of the girl?"

The Root member nodded before continuing in a monotone voice, "She went to stay with Minato, Sakumo sent her to him for what I assume is training."

Danzo raised an eyebrow, "What of the boy?"

"Kakashi stayed behind with his father." Danzo nodded before ordering the shinobi to remove his mask; once the mask was removed, pearl white eyes stared back at Danzo, who in turned finally let emotion cross his face in the form of a smirk. His collection of shinobi included this little masterpiece; the bastard child of a non-Hyuuga mother and Hyuuga father, both dead now of course. He dismissed his Root shinobi; satisfied by the news he had been given. If Hatake Sakumo committed suicide, Uzu Naru would need a new sensei and with her potential and bloodlimit, she would make an impressive addition to his collection.

Danzo smiled as he pictured the adorable little girl rising quickly in his ranks and becoming the tool she was destined to be. She would be great with his training and only he could give her the kind of training she needed. That's the reason he leaked the traitor rumor to the villagers, he wanted Naru and with Sakumo out of the picture and no known parents, he would get her. Of course, the Hatake boy was an added bonus, his natural genius and the mystery of the White Chakra only deepened Danzo's desire to have the pair of Chunin. Danzo only wished his shinobi could hear what the members of the Hatake house were saying; the Byakugan could only see through walls and did not allow his shinobi to hear from far away. He rose from his seat and walked into the hallway, passing by still shinobi, poised to attack without a moment's notice; soon he would have everything he wanted.

The next step was the Hokage seat.

* * *

Sakumo woke up early the next morning, he had a strange and utterly strong desire to drink, but he refused to give in to that desire. He was going to spend his last day sober and as far away from alcohol as he could get. He quickly showered and went downstairs to make breakfast, he wasn't going to be home most of the morning; he wanted to go say goodbye to Nozomi before he actually killed himself. He would spend the afternoon with Kakashi and give his son one last afternoon together. He finished the omelet and went back upstairs to find Kakashi sleeping against the wall with Aki in his lap; Sakumo stopped and let that image sink into his brain.

He wanted to remember Kakashi like this, so very innocent and vulnerable. Vaguely Sakumo wondered if his suicide would break Kakashi before he pushed the thought out of his head. He walked over and gently shook Kakashi awake and with a heavy voice tried to make light conversation. "Wake up Ka-chan."

One grey eye popped open before both were blinking up at him, Kakashi reached for his hand and squeezed before getting out of the bed, Aki hopped to the floor beside them. "Dad? What time is it?"

Sakumo looked at the clock, "About 8:00 am, come eat breakfast." Kakashi nodded and went downstairs; Sakumo had to grip the door hard to prevent himself from walking into his room and taking a drink of sake. He took deep even breaths and headed downstairs, he would be sober when he went and saw his wife today.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

Something was different about Dad today, like he had come to peace with something. I wanted to ask, but honestly didn't want to know the answer. He handed me an omelet and we ate in silence; Aki was underneath my feet, attempting to gnaw on my toes. I gently pushed her away with my foot and went back to eating; Dad stopped eating and looked underneath the table. I blinked and looked to see what he was looking at. It appeared that Aki had tried to go after his toes too. He reached under and pulled Aki up by the scruff of her neck. "Little one, we don't bite."

Aki whined slightly and Dad put her back on the floor, when she went to bite him again, he repeated the process. The third time she went to bite him; she stopped and looked up at him before backing away. Dad smiled and patted her head, "Good girl."

He looked at me, "You've got to make sure she doesn't pick up biting, I know she's teething but if she learns she can bite now, she'll want to do it when she's older."

I nodded and Dad stood to place his dish in the sink. He was heading towards the door; I quickly got up and raced in front of him. He stopped and looked down at me, "What are you doing Kakashi?"

I looked up at him and put on my best pout, "I don't want you to leave today. Please stay."

I watched as his eyes softened before an unexplainable expression passed over his face, he sighed before leaning down and picking me up. For the briefest moment I believe I had won; then he turned to the side and put me on the ground and walked out the door. I opened the door behind him and watched him walk into the distance, a chill raced up my spine as I realized this may be the last time I ever see him walk away from the house. My gut told me that if I didn't do something, his dead body would have to be carried out just like before.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Ronin stood in the Jounin lounge of the Hokage Tower and glared at his former teammate, Ryozo. Jiro was beside Ryozo, looking between the two. This was the first time since Sakumo's hearing they had been in the same room together, Ronin had been too guilt ridden and upset to see his teammates. It was technically his fault they failed the mission; if he wouldn't have gotten caught then Sakumo wouldn't have needed to save him. He shouldn't have blindly followed after the Iwa patrol. Ronin closed his eyes before reopening them and looking at his teammates. He was going to play with fire today. "Have you two been by to see Taichou yet?"

Jiro looked at the floor and Ryozo laughed, "He's no longer our Taichou Ronin, he's a disgraced ninja that will most likely never return to former glory. He's a washout and a coward."

Ronin's eyes flashed, "He's not a coward, nor is he a washout. I've seen the way everyone's treating him, if I were being shunned I would do the same thing he's doing and stay away. This is will blow over eventually."

Ryozo laughed, "Seriously? Even though you're a ninja you still think like a civilian. Sakumo is done for, it's a surprise he hasn't taken the initiative to end it already."

Jiro sucked in a breath and Ronin's eyes widened, "He..he wouldn't do anything like that. He wouldn't leave Kakashi like that."

Ryozo laughed, "Perhaps his death would keep a repeat of the other day from happening."

Ronin crossed his arms before asking what Ryozo was talking about. "Kakashi was attacked and beaten by four Chunin the other day; I found it extremely funny that the kid was naïve enough to blindly trust the other Chunin like that."

Jiro snarled before facing Ryozo, "Of course he trusts the other Chunin, they're supposed to be our comrades and we should be able to trust them with our lives."

Ryozo looked at his two former teammates in front of him before smirking, "I should have known you two would side with Sakumo, losers always side together. I'm the only true ninja from our group; if I would have been in charge then we would have completed the mission."

Ronin closed his eyes and looked so much older than his 25 years when spoke, "Then I would be dead and my child would have grown up not knowing me."

Ryozo snorted, "That's your own fault for having the kid, loved ones and so called precious people only slow the mission down. We fight because we are the tools of the Hokage, we go where he wants us to go and we complete our mission. Failure was not an option and yet he chose it and look what's it's gotten him. Disgrace."

Jiro stared at Ryozo before speaking, "He is more of a leader than you could ever hope to be."

Ryozo laughed before turning and walking past his former teammates before stopping in shock, the Hokage stood at the door with a disapproving look on his face. He had heard the entire encounter and knew the once great tracking team would never be the same; he would have to disband them before he deployed them. Jiro waited until Ryozo left the room before leaving as well, leaving Ronin to stand numbly in the middle of the Jounin lounge.

* * *

Minato woke up early and went to the Hokage Tower, he needed to find Sakumo's team and see why they weren't supporting their captain. Ronin wasn't hard to find, he looked like he hadn't slept in a few days and had large rings underneath his eyes. Minato stopped before he started yelling at him for his incompetence as a friend, the man was suffering just like Sakumo was but for different reasons. Minato could practically feel the guilt radiating off the man. He cleared his throat before talking to the man, "Ronin?"

The light haired man looked at Minato with honey brown eyes trained on his face, "Yes?"

Minato took a step forward, "I need your help, but first I must know. What is Sakumo to you?"

Ronin's normally clear eyes clouded with emotion as he opened his mouth, "What is Sakumo? The man's a hero; he's saved my life multiple times and doesn't deserve anything that's happened to him or those two kids."

The world froze for Minato, "What do you mean? What's been happening to the kids?"

Ronin looked deep into Minato's eyes before answering, "Kakashi was attacked by four adult Chunin and I heard that Naru's nose was broken in a cheap shot during a fight about Sakumo."

Minato took a deep breath and let it out, "I need your help Ronin, I've made a promise to a little girl and I've got to find a way to help Sakumo."

Ronin looked out the window, "He's so alone now Minato, no one goes near him because as soon as you do, the others think he has somehow tainted you, but I'm tired of just standing by idly. I want to help."

Minato smiled at the man who just seemed to gain his spine back, "Good, we're going to gather supporters and show Sakumo that we're behind him and believe in him. The mission was important, but comrades are even more important."

Minato watched as Ronin headed out the door, at that point Minato made a vow to find those who caused his kids pain and he was going to cause them pain.

* * *

Thoughts swirled around Sakumo's mind as he walked through the Village, most people and vendors sneered in his direction, a couple had signs posted outside their doors that read, "traitors prohibited", Sakumo really didn't let it bother him. The vendors had stopped selling them food two weeks ago and if it wasn't for Naru, they would have starved. She would buy the groceries using a henge because her chakra reserves were so large, which allowed her to hold the jutsu longer, and because Sakumo just couldn't bring himself to leave the bottle behind long enough to actually try to shop.

Sakumo closed his eyes, he needed a drink so bad, but he was determined to see his wife sober. A rock appeared out of nowhere and he effortlessly dodged it; then looked into the face of his ex-teammate, Ryozo. Sakumo looked at the man emotionlessly, "Ryozo, didn't your mother ever teach you not to throw rocks?"

Ryozo snarled before laughing, "Didn't your mother ever teach you to not betray your Village?"

Sakumo could feel the anger welling inside, but instead of letting it out, he held it in and walked forward. Ryozo blocked him, "Where you going Sakumo? What you're so busy being suspended that you can't talk to me?"

Sakumo tried to backtrack and go the opposite way, another shinobi stopped his path. Finally fed up, Sakumo turned to Ryozo, "Let me pass."

Ryozo shook his head, "I don't think so."

Sakumo pulled away from Ryozo and stared deep into the man's eyes, "I'm tired of this Ryozo. Let me pass."

The man stepped forward and raised his fist to punch Sakumo, but a hand wrapped itself firmly around the offending arm. Sakumo looked into the face of police chief, Uchiha Fugaku. "That's enough. Ryozo you'll spend the night in jail if I see something like this again."

Sakumo raised an eyebrow at the Uchiha, not understanding why he would interfere. Fugaku seemed to understand Sakumo's unspoken question, "Why did I stop him? Because no matter what kind of mess you landed Konoha in, you're still a shinobi and it's illegal for him to hit you like that." The Uchiha walked away and Sakumo rolled his eyes, after tonight he wouldn't have to worry about it.

* * *

As Sakumo walked forward, dodging more rocks, rotten vegetables, and insults, a figure followed behind him. The figure was none other than Rafu, his eyes dancing with mirth as he watched Sakumo fall from his pedestal. Rafu wanted to be the next one to hurt Sakumo, he needed some type of reward for what he accomplished and from judging the direction in which Sakumo was traveling, Rafu assumed the man was going to visit his wife's grave.

A smile stretched across Rafu's face, he would catch Sakumo at the grave and pray that Nozomi could see how low her beloved had sunk. As Rafu followed after Sakumo, a vague thought entered the man's head, was his revenge really worth the price Konoha was now paying for it? Rafu shook off that silly thought and followed behind Sakumo into the cemetery. He waited behind a bush and watched as Sakumo walked close to his wife's grave before stopping cold and letting out an anguished cry. Rafu blinked in surprise, before carefully looking at the once beautiful headstone of Hatake Nozomi.

Rafu closed his eyes in disbelief, someone had defiled her grave.

* * *

Sakumo had never felt angrier; sadder, or guiltier than he did as he looked at the headstone. His mind couldn't even comprehend the derogatory words scribbled onto the once beautiful granite. His fingers were numb as he tore a piece of cloth from his shirt and tried to wipe off the headstone, luckily the writing was coming off with spit and careful rubbing.

* * *

Rafu felt an unusual feeling latch onto his heart as he watched Sakumo miserably try to clean off the headstone with spit and a torn piece of shirt. He tried to place the feeling and was almost shocked when he realized he felt guilty. He actually felt guilty for what he had done to Sakumo.

Rafu shook his head and told himself it was just gas or something else because there was no way he felt guilty about taking his revenge. Rafu sat there and watched as Sakumo finished cleaning the headstone and began talking softly to the stone, even though Rafu hated Sakumo, he left the area.

His heart was too confused to even carry through with his plan of verbally attacking Sakumo, why was he deciding to grow a conscience now?

* * *

Sakumo looked at the headstone and rubbed the back of his hand across the upraised letters of her name. "Hey baby, I guess I'm here to say goodbye. I'll be seeing you really soon and I can't wait. I've really missed you and so has Kakashi."

Sakumo looked at the ground when he mentioned his son, "I hate to do this 'Zomi but I have to, I have to purge our family name from dishonor. You understand that right? Kakashi's going to be just fine with Minato; he'll raise him to be strong and a good shinobi. Plus he's got Naru."

Sakumo smiled before leaning closer to the headstone, "Let me tell you about Naru, you would have liked her because she's a lot like you except blonde and a ninja. She keeps Kakashi on his toes and she's also making him human, I know I haven't been the best father to him but I can only hope my actions tonight make up for all of that. I'm going to make everything right."

Sakumo brushed his hands against the headstone once more before making a final request, "Please, just watch over him Nozomi, he needs his mother to watch over him because his father hasn't been doing a very good job of that lately."

Sakumo walked away from the headstone for the final time and saw the sun was high in the sky, noon. In exactly 12 hours Hatake Sakumo would purge dishonor from the family name.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

A knock sounded throughout the house and I raised an eyebrow before heading to the door and opening it, an ANBU stood before me with a scroll in his hand. He handed it to me and waited for me to read it, the Hokage was calling a Chunin meeting about deployment. I thanked the ANBU and went back inside the house to get ready to leave. It didn't take long to get to the Hokage Tower, even though I spend a majority of my walk trying to avoid drawing attention to myself, of course that was impossible when walking into a room full of Chunin.

The moment I walked into the room all eyes were trained on me with mixtures of anger and pity reflected back towards me, I resisted the urge to growl at the lot of them. They had no right to pity me when they were causing all of my troubles, not my father or anything my father had done. Naru just happened to walk in right after me and caught my eye before nodding and walking to the middle of the room.

The other Chunins parted up the middle, making sure to avoid touching me or Naru. I grunted underneath my breath and tried my hardest to ignore them. Naru stopped ahead of me and searched the room swiftly before turning towards the right and swiftly disappearing into the crowd of Chunin. I rolled my eyes after her before heading in her general direction, which wasn't hard with the other ninjas parting to try and keep as far away from me as they could.

She had found Raido and Genma in the background; I went to stand beside her, waiting to see their reactions from seeing me. Instead of the glares I expected, I was greeted with smiles and a soft inquiry from Genma. His eyes never left the crowd of ninjas; his smile had melted into a scowl as he shook his head in disgust, "It's shameful how everyone is acting, downright disgraceful."

I eye-smiled at him, he didn't know how much his words meant. Perhaps I had found a true friend in Genma. Genma kept his eyes trained on the other shinobi before softly asking, "How's Sakumo-san?" I closed my eyes but before I could answer, the Hokage called the meeting to order.

"Thank you all for coming today, this meeting won't take long I just need to inform you of some changes to the deployment roster."

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I turned away from Genma and Raido to listen to the Hokage; he was currently going though the deployment rosters by commanding officer and informing us Chunin of the changes to the original plans. Kakashi was beside me, patiently waiting to see the reaction of his father's name among the Chunin, I was just wondering if the Council allowed him to still command a squad. Finally the Hokage made it to Sensei's name and the room exploded. "The next squad is Hatake Sakumo's squad."

A Chunin in the back of the room snorted with disbelief, "You mean to tell me they're actually going to let that traitor keep a command position? He's done nothing to deserve it."

Another Chunin crossed his arms before speaking, "I refuse to work with him, he'll do nothing but betray us again."

Kakashi clenched his fist together and surprisingly Genma placed a hand on his shoulder to calm him and whispered a soft, "Ignore the idiots," to him.

As the Chunin began arguing with the Hokage he finally had enough and slammed the wooden scroll onto the desk in front of him, "That's enough. Hatake Sakumo is not a traitor, he's a fine shinobi and anyone of you would be honored to have him as a commander. Leave the man alone and let him finish out his punishment in peace, now as I was saying before, Hatake Sakumo's squad consisting of Inuzuka Jiro, Soto Ronin, Suzuki Ryozo, Uchiha Ai, Yamada Taro, Hatake Kakashi and Uzu Naru has been disbanded."

Multiple Chunin attempted to cheer, but one look from the Hokage and they were quiet. "I'm disbanding Sakumo's team and completely remaking it."

Silence greeted the Hokage and a very smug smile worked its way on his face as he called out the new team for Sakumo, "Hatake Sakumo will now lead Soto Ronin, Uchiha Ai, Yamada Taro, Hatake Kakashi, Uzu Naru, Ishikawa Sai, and Inoue Kenichi."

Kakashi looked quickly at me, trying to see if I noticed that two of his father's original teammates were removed from the list. I nodded but shrugged my shoulders to let him know that I noticed but didn't understand why. The Hokage finished out the list and dismissed everyone in the room. Kakashi and I stayed though, we had questions.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

Naru walked up to the Third and smiled before asking why our team was reformed. The Hokage sighed before answering, "There was an incident this morning in the Jounin lounge and I've decided it would be best to remove some people off of your father's team. If I would have left Ryozo on there, then the team would have been in disarray."

I blinked at his answer before asking my own question, "What about Jiro?"

The Hokage sighed before answering, "I think it would just be best if Ronin was the only original member on the team."

We nodded and left the Hokage Tower; Naru walked beside me and grabbed my arm to get my attention. "I'm sorry I left like that yesterday. I was just really excited about seeing him that I didn't think about what I was doing until later."

I laughed it off, "It's okay. I understand you missed him and besides there wasn't anything you would have been able to do last night."

She looked at the ground before smiling back at me, "I talked to him last night and he's going to help Sensei. He couldn't believe the stuff going on and promised he would help Sensei." I thought about what she said, I knew she was talking about Minato-sensei, but she couldn't call him Dad in public yet. I didn't try last time to get help from anybody, perhaps this time Sensei could help me with Dad.

Naru and I went our separate ways, she went back to Minato's house and I headed back to my house, but the closer I got the more the bad feeling in my chest tightened. I let out a shallow breath before trudging forward, the closer I got to the house; the more I could make out voices. I entered the driveway and saw a group of fifteen men standing in front of the house, shouting obscenities and throwing things at the house.

Dad was standing on the front porch; Aki was trembling beside the door, watching the angry men. One man threw a bucket of what looked to be blood onto the wooden porch, dad stepped back so the substance wouldn't reach his feet. Their angry shouts got louder and called for his death, a kunai was thrown and sunk into the wood of the door beside dad's head. Dad never moved, he stared straight into the crowd, seeing them but not seeing them. I knew his mind wasn't on the men in the crowd, but on the demons that haunted his waking dreams.

I walked closer and the men noticed me, some sneered at me, throwing curses my way too. Others began drawing kunais and shurikens; Dad noticed me and looked worriedly over the crowd before walking forward towards me. He didn't trust the crowd not to try something; he was going to make sure they wouldn't touch me. I walked forward and made it past the first man; it felt like I was walking to my own execution.

The anger and hate poured off these men in monstrous amounts and the air was thick with tension. Dad was so close to me that if I would just reach out and touch him, I would be home free. I brought my hand out for him, but instead of his hand grasping mine, another unfamiliar hand took mine. The older and taller man painfully gripped my hand before jerking my body hard enough to dislocate my shoulder. I yelped out in pain and the next few seconds passed by in slow motion.

A blur of black and white bounded down the steps and latched onto the arm of the man that had me. I could see Dad's face forming into a mixture of shock and pride as he recognized the black and white blur as Aki. Blood ran down the length of the man's arm as he released me and I fell back into my father's arms. Then in silent horror I watched as he man harshly removed my Aki from his arm and threw her to the ground, his foot connected with her smaller body and the force of the kick knocked her into the wood of the porch.

My entire world went red.

"AKI!"

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo watched in horror as Aki tried to protect Kakashi, her animal instincts taking over and propelling the small puppy into attacking. Kakashi's anguished cry after he watched Aki being kicked to the porch was too much for Sakumo. All of his time spent drinking and all of this time spent wanting a drink was forgotten as he placed Kakashi on the ground and attacked the offending man.

Kakashi ran forward to the barely breathing puppy and cradled her to his chest. Sakumo landed a solid right hook on the man's jaw and let him fall into a crumpled heap on the ground. He never looked back as he walked over to Kakashi and took Aki out of his hands. His mind was on auto-pilot as he gently told Kakashi he would take care of Aki. Kakashi numbly nodded and Sakumo pushed him into the house and quickly summoned Shiri. "Take care of Kakashi, if anyone besides Naru or Minato tries to breach this porch, attack." Shiri nodded and walked into the house after Kakashi.

Sakumo raced across Konoha, searching quickly for the one place he knew would be able to help him. He skidded to a stop in front of the Inuzuka Clan house and walked to the door and began knocking harshly against the wood. Tsume walked out and raised an eyebrow at Sakumo. "Hatake Sakumo? What do I own this visit to?"

Sakumo didn't say anything he just motioned to the puppy in his arms, Tsume's eyes widened as she saw the condition of the puppy. She quickly scooped Aki into her arms and motioned for Sakumo to follow her. She placed the puppy on a metal table in a room filled with medical supplies and quickly began working on her. She stopped long enough to tell Sakumo that it would be touch and go for the puppy and that she'd contact him later on any change in her condition.

Sakumo nodded quickly and returned to the house, the men were gone, but the remains of their last visit were still left on the porch. Sakumo stepped over the blood like substance and walked into the house to find Kakashi sitting beside Shiri. The female dog was nuzzling against his cheek and letting Kakashi pet her gently.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

Dad walked into the room and his eyes looked so very sad before softening with warmth. He came over and sat beside me, "Tsume said that she'll contact us if anything happens." I nodded but didn't stop petting Shiri, Dad sighed before picking me up.

I blinked before letting him carry me outside, he placed me on the ground and knelt down in front of me. "Well are you going to get on or not?" I got onto his back and we quietly made our way to the woods on the side of the house. I instantly knew where we were going, the Hatake Paradise. Dad didn't take us the long way this time around, instead he quickly maneuvered through the trees and soon we were at the opening to the place. Dad let me down and walked over to the lake and sat down, it was still cold in Konoha so he didn't touch the water but he stared back at his reflection for a long time.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Eventually Sakumo grew tired of watching his reflection in the water and called Kakashi over to him. Kakashi didn't hesitate to come to him and instead of sitting beside him like he normally would have done, Kakashi sat in his lap. Sakumo hugged Kakashi close, he needed to give his son this last afternoon together because Sakumo didn't want Kakashi to think he was leaving because of him. Kakashi's gentle breathing filled the clearing and Sakumo found himself wanting a drink so bad it hurt, his hands shook slightly with the urge to drink but he willed himself to ignore it. He would drink right before he took the last plunge and then he would sleep forever.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

We stayed like that for a while, neither of us talking; we understood what the other was feeling enough to know how to comfort each other. I smiled gently beneath my mask, last time right before Dad killed himself he had been so distant and barely recognized me and this time he was here, trying to comfort me after what happened to Aki.

I snuggled deeper into his hold, not caring that I was a Chunin, not caring that I was technically breaking the shinobi rules by showing this much emotion, I was just happy that I was getting through to him. For the first time in weeks, I was sure he had decided against killing himself.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo sighed as Kakashi move closer into his grasp, it hurt to know that this would be the last time he held Kakashi like this, but it was for the best. Kakashi would gain so much more from his death than if he survived, plus Minato would take care of Kakashi. His boy would be just fine. Eventually the chill in the air became unbearable and Sakumo finally broke the silence in the clearing. "I think it's time to go home Ka-chan."

Kakashi nodded but stopped, "Can we eat ramen tonight?"

Sakumo wanted to say no because that would mean going into the village, but instead he smiled and nodded in agreement.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

Dad and I made our way home with two boxes of Ramen, my heart was rejoicing the entire way home. He wasn't going to kill himself; he was going to stay with me. I made a face at the ruined front porch before walking forward and opening the door, Shiri was there instantly to see who it was. Once she saw us, she wagged her tail before sniffing the box in my hands. I patted her head and turned to dad, he was reading the names that were carved into the front porch.

He closed his eyes and looked up at me; fear gripped my heart for a moment as I noticed the dull look of them before they switched back to the warmth. A small part of me wondered if perhaps I was wrong and he was still going to kill himself. I shook that thought off and entered the kitchen. Dad placed his box on the table before grabbing two bowls and setting them on the table too. He looked around the kitchen before turning to me, "Do you know where the tea pot went?"

I laughed at his question before looking around the kitchen with him; the only other logical place would be in his study. I smiled at him, my mask was pooled around my neck, and told him I would get it out of the study. He nodded and kept searching the cabinets.

I walked down the hall and felt a strong sense of foreboding, like I wasn't going to like whatever I found on the other side of that door. I took a deep breath and tried to shake off the remains of last night's dream as I opened the door.

The room was bathed in light from the window, but as I closed the door behind me to search for the tea pot I saw something caused me to freeze. A single mat was placed on the floor, eerily similar to the same one from last time and similar to the ones used in seppuku. My heart pounded in my ears as I saw a single candle sitting in the middle of the room, reminding me of my nightmare.

I backed away from the sight with hot angry tears welling in my eyes, but I refused to let them fall. How dare he set this up, how dare he lie to me and pretend everything was okay. What was he planning to do, wait till I was asleep? I found the tea pot and along with the tea pot I found the death poem. My heart beat louder in my ears and sweat began to form on my body as I read the words on the white sheet.

The red ink gave the white paper such a sinister look and the elegant handwriting of my father's calligraphy only adding to the sinister feel of the paper. My eyes began reading the short poem, disbelief rang throughout my mind. He had actually planned to kill himself all long, while I was thinking he was getting better he was actually only pretending. I was furious and hurt, and oh so terrified of what this meant. I couldn't let him die, not after all of the hard work I had put into saving him. The poem spoke of midnight, of the completion of one day and the beginning of another; it would have been very poetic if it wasn't my father's last plea.

"The darkness of midnight has fallen around me

And I can't see the promise of tomorrow.

No more will my soul rejoice in the spring

And no more will my eyes see the sunrise.

Will dishonor be purged from my name?

Weep not for me, though I will never take another breath,

I will finally be free."

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo searched the cabinets while his son was out of the room and found his secret stash of sake in the top cabinet where Kakashi couldn't reach. He knew it was earlier than he would have liked to take his last drink, but he needed something to drink or he was going to go crazy. The first bottle went down easy enough, and soon he reached for the second one. Sakumo smiled as the alcohol surged through his body, his blood carrying the affects of the drink to his brain and giving him just the right buzz he needed.

He placed the bottle on the counter before wondering what was taking Kakashi so long, then the world froze for Sakumo, Kakashi was in his study where all of the equipment for his seppuku was set up. Sakumo ran down the hall, slightly stumbling over the couch in the living room, and ran into his study to see Kakashi standing at his desk with his death poem clenched in one hand. Sakumo watched as angry tears welled in his son's eyes and he advanced on his father.

Sakumo closed the door behind him and stood in front of Kakashi.

* * *

Minato smiled to himself as he counted the number of shinobi he had talked to today, about 15 shinobi had expressed loyalty to Sakumo and his beliefs, even some civilians stood behind Sakumo, including all of Ronin's family, especially Ronin's young and very pregnant wife. Naru sat on the steps outside his house; he smiled at her when he got close enough, "Whatcha doing Naru?"

She smiled back, "I'm just thinking that's all."

Minato sat down beside her, "About what?"

Naru took a deep breath before speaking, "The civilians and other ninja have been destroying Sensei's house, so I was wondering if those supporters you rounded up today would be willing to help fix it up. It's not fair that they are allowed to do that to his property."

Minato nodded and picked Naru up, "You really care about Sakumo don't you? I think I'm jealous."

Naru laughed into her father's shoulder, "Don't be jealous, he maybe dear to me, but you're my daddy."

Minato laughed, "That I am, that I am."

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I looked at him with angry eyes and he knew that I knew the truth; I could already smell the alcohol on him. He had started early tonight, so his suicide was such a special occasion that he just had to start drinking earlier. I didn't care that he was my father at that point; I was so betrayed and angry.

I threw the death poem to the ground and rounded on him, not even thinking about the words that came out of my mouth. "What in the Hell are you thinking? How dare you decide to leave me! You make a decision to save your teammates and refuse to see the good in your decision. You've been drinking yourself into a stupor every night and refuse to train with me and Naru. Can't you see how much I need you?"

He stood in front of me, I don't know if he was shocked that I had found the stuff or if he was shocked because I was actually yelling at him. I couldn't stop here, I had to continue. In fact, I don't think I could have stopped even if I wanted to, all of my time and energy spent on him was not going to be in vain, regardless of his wishes. "My mother would be ashamed of you. I guess Rafu-sensei was right. Go on Sakumo, go on and take the coward's way out because in the end that's all you are, a coward."

Then as fast as lightening, I saw stars and found myself on the floor blinking hot tears out of my eyes and staring up at my father's outstretched hand.

He had hit me.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

The words rang through Sakumo's mind as he heard his young son step over the line, not only using his first name but also calling him a coward. No one called Hatake Sakumo a coward, and in his alcohol befuddled mind Sakumo did the first thing that came to his mind, he struck out.

Sakumo watched as his small son's head slam against the desk, and watched as tears of pain fell slowly down his full cheeks. He had hit his son, he never hit his son. Sakumo backed away until his back touched the door of the study before sliding down the length of the door to the floor. His eyes trained on the line of blood that flowed out of Kakashi's mouth, he must have bitten his lip whenever he hit the desk.

The two Hatake's sat staring at each other before everything broke. Kakashi whimpered and Sakumo quickly pulled him against him, cradling his small son against his body, rocking both of them like he did when Kakashi was a baby. Sakumo couldn't stop the tears from falling out of his eyes as his mind became painfully sharp and he realized what he had done. Kakashi's body trembled as his own sobs worked their way up, "Please, Please, I'm sorry just don't leave me Dad. Please Daddy don't leave me. I don't want you to leave me alone."

Sakumo didn't even try to stop the waterfall of tears that fell out of his eyes as he begged his son in return, "Oh God, Kakashi, I'm so sorry. I'll never hit you again. I'm so sorry. Never again baby, never again."

Kakashi shook his head against his father's shoulder and looked up into his eyes; they were so sad, so guilty and so needy. "I don't care about that Daddy; I just want you to stay with me." Kakashi's smaller hands buried themselves into Sakumo's shirt and refused to let go as he begged and pleaded with Sakumo.

Sakumo shook his head; he couldn't believe how stupid he had been. He rocked Kakashi in his arms, trying to calm both of their beating hearts and falling tears, Sakumo pressed his face into Kakashi's silver hair and promised, "I promise, Ka-chan, I promise I won't leave you. I'm not going anywhere."

Kakashi didn't answer and he didn't let go of his father's shirt, all the years of built of frustration over his father's suicide from the other time had finally broke through the surface and it had spent all of Kakashi's energy up. He just laid his head on the man's shoulder and rejoiced in the fact that the body was warm and alive, instead of cold and dead. His eyelids were heavy and the day had been too tiring for Kakashi, he soon lost his internal fight with sleep and welcomed the darkness.

Sakumo noticed the even breathing and managed to maneuver to his feet and walked up the stairs with Kakashi in his arms. The clock on the wall said it was 8 p.m, but Sakumo ignored the time and placed Kakashi in the large bed before getting underneath the covers with him. Kakashi woke up long enough to blindly reach for Sakumo once more, and with a death grip fixed onto the man's hand he gently fell back to sleep.

Sakumo joined him soon afterwards and for the first time in a long time, he didn't need the alcohol to sleep.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I stood at the window and watched dad talk to another ninja, that was the tenth person to stop by the house and ask if they could help Sakumo-sensei in any way. I smiled to myself as every time a new person would come up, Sensei was going to see he still had friends, they had just needed a little prodding to get going. Dad waved to me from the yard and I winked back at him before lying down and attempting to sleep. We were going to visit the Hatake house early in the morning to fix the mess that had been created by others.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo woke up at exactly 11:55, five minutes before midnight. Five minutes before the time he was supposed to kill himself. He sat up and saw that Kakashi had turned in his sleep and was currently holding a pillow, thinking it was Sakumo's arm. Swiftly Sakumo got out of bed and made his way downstairs and entered into the study.

He took a deep breath before picking up his death poem and smoothing it out. He walked over to the single candle on the floor and took out a kitchen match to light it. His tanto was within arm's length and he could easily reach it if the desire came. Sakumo's entire frame was still as he closed his eyes and opened them to watch the candle flicker.

He unsheathed the tanto and watched the clock, one more minute until midnight.

Sakumo's life flashed before his eyes, everything from his first day as a Genin to the first time he held his son. The way his wife looked on their wedding day and the way she had tried to surprise him after she found out she was pregnant. The first time Nozomi let him kiss her, Kakashi's first words, first steps. The moment Naru came into his life and the determination in her blue eyes. The way Ronin thanked him for saving his life and the way Ryozo had looked in the market. Sakumo opened his eyes and counted down the last ten seconds with his tanto clutched against his stomach with one hand and death poem in his other hand.

Ten seconds left and Sakumo found himself wondering if he made the right decision.

Nine seconds left and Sakumo begins to pray.

Eight seconds left and Sakumo apologized to his wife for breaking his promise to her.

Seven seconds left and Sakumo remembers the way the sun used to bounce off of Nozomi's hair before she got sick.

Six seconds left and Sakumo can clearly see Kakashi and Naru pranking Minato with a water jutsu.

Five seconds left and Sakumo apologizes to Minato for losing his way.

Four seconds left and Sakumo realizes for just a moment he loved the bottle more than his son.

Three seconds left and Sakumo remembers the first night after Nozomi died. He remembers trying to explain to a toddler that his mother wasn't coming home.

Two seconds left now and Sakumo thinks about the impact his decision made on the Village.

One second left and all thought processes stop for Sakumo. He closes his eyes before snapping them open, his decision was made.

The tanto drops to the mat and the death poem is held over the open flame of the candle. Sakumo watches the ashes of the paper scatter around the room and fall around the candle. His eyes trained on the clock, one minute past midnight and Hatake Sakumo was still alive. He picked the tanto up and sheathed it, then with a gentle smile blew out the candle.

Sakumo walked out of the study and into the kitchen, reaching up into the highest cabinet he took out his stash of sake and began pouring them down the drain. He knew he would have some killer withdrawal symptoms but that didn't matter. All that mattered right now was sleeping soundly in a bed on the second floor of the house. Sakumo called Shiri to him and quickly wrote a note to Minato on the back of a used piece of paper with strict instructions to give it only to Minato.

He was going to need help and Minato would help him.

* * *

Minato was woken up by the sound of scratching on his window and looked in confusion at the ninken at his window. He opened the window and took the note from the ninken. A simple plea was written on the back in Sakumo's hand writing, "I'm going to need help tomorrow."

Minato nodded and sent a note back to Sakumo, "I'll be there first thing in the morning. No questions asked."

* * *

Sakumo smiled at his friend's reply and true to his word, Minato showed up on his front porch at day break. The sunrise had never looked more beautiful to Sakumo, nor had seeing his friend ever felt so good.

They talked quietly, Minato nodding his head and realizing how close he came to losing his friend, he would do anything to help Sakumo overcome the trials he was going to face in the next few weeks. It wasn't until twenty minutes later when at least fifty shinobi and civilians showed up on Sakumo's front porch with supplies to redo his front porch that Sakumo knew he made the right decision.

* * *

Naru made her way past the adults talking at the kitchen table and into the room she knew Kakashi would be in. He was sitting on the bed, looking out the window with a smile on his face and a piece of paper in his hand. She also noticed the slight bruise forming on his face. "You did it."

He shook his head, "No we did it, together. Thanks for everything Naru."

She smiled softly, "What's in your hand?"

Kakashi shook the paper before handing it to her, "Dad rewrote his death poem early this morning and calls it his life poem."

"The darkness of midnight was torn from me,

I can finally see that the promise of tomorrow was in front of me the entire time.

My soul doesn't need to wait for spring to rejoice

For my eyes can finally see the beautiful hues of sunrise.

Where is my dishonor?

For when I look into the faces of those around me,

I see nothing but love.

I weep for you, my accusers,

Because I am finally and truly free."


	19. Chapter 17

**Chapter 17**

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Raido sat on his front porch swinging his feet in the open air, thinking back over the last couple of weeks. His thoughts lingered the longest over yesterday's Chunin meeting and his own Sensei's beliefs. Raido was one of Rafu's three students and Rafu wasn't ashamed to speak his mind about Hatake Sakumo, which led to Raido having mixed feelings over the whole Sakumo situation. Raido still respected and admired the White Fang, but he also acknowledged the fact that Sakumo broke the rules. He wasn't one of those that openly hated the Hatake and he never spoke a foul word against the man, but he didn't stand up for him either. Raido was happy just sitting quietly by and watching everyone else react, that was until his best friend Genma called him out on it yesterday after the meeting.

 _Flashback…_

 _Genma watched Kakashi and Naru walk away from the Chunin meeting before rounding on Raido. He gripped Raido's arm and pulled him into an alley beside the Hokage Tower. "Genma? What are you doing?"_

 _Genma slammed a fist into the wall beside Raido's head, "What the Hell is your problem? You didn't say a single word to Kakashi or Naru in there. Are you listening too closely to your crazy sensei?"_

 _Raido sputtered slightly before calming himself and answering Genma, "No, I don't agree with everything Rafu-sensei says, but Sakumo-san did break the rules. I don't agree with what everyone's saying and doing but what can I do Genma? I'm just a single Chunin."_

 _Genma stood back and leaned against the opposite alley wall, "Well you're going to take my place tomorrow."_

 _Raido raised an eyebrow in question, "What are you talking about?"_

 _Genma smiled at his friend, "Minato-sensei tracked me down earlier today and is getting a group of people together to rally behind Sakumo-san. I can't go because of my pig-headed father, so you can go in my place."_

 _Looking into his friend's smiling face, Raido couldn't tell him no, nor did he really want to. This would give Raido the chance to actually do something, his sensei wasn't going to like it but sometimes rules had to be broken. Without another thought Raido agreed to go in Genma's place. It wasn't until later that evening that Genma told him of the group heading to the Hatake house and fixing up the damages to the property._

 _End Flashback…._

So Raido sat on his front porch waiting for Ryuu, his younger brother, to get ready so they could leave. Even though Ryuu was a Chunin and could take care of himself, their mother didn't like for him to stay at home by himself, so Raido was forced to take his brother with him. Raido didn't mind his brother tagging along with him, but he didn't know how the rest of his family felt about Sakumo and he was already catching heat from his Sensei over his feelings toward the man. He didn't need for those hostile feelings to start in his home too; of course their father had been on missions before with Hatake Sakumo so maybe he wouldn't mind.

"Rai, I'm ready."

Raido turned to look at his only brother and the spitting image of his mother. While Raido had dark hair and a slightly tan complexion, Ryuu had blonde hair and a lighter skin tone. Raido had dark brown eyes and Ryuu had light blue eyes that matched his hair perfectly. They both had the same facial structures, with a strong jaw and broad nose. The only difference was that Ryuu had a birthmark spanning around his neck, it looked almost like a dragon, which is why his parents named him Ryuu.

Raido smiled at his younger brother before nodding and walking down the street toward the Hatake home. Young Raido had grown up admiring the strength and humility of the White Fang, and knowing that he was going to help his hero was very exciting. Raido was quickly forgetting his Sensei's harsh words and was only hearing the excited beating of his heart as he came to the long walkway that led to the front of the house. He looked around in awe at the place, he had never been this close to the Hatake home and it was beautiful.

The Hatake house was set far back from the main street and couldn't be seen from the street; the forest that surrounded the walkway leading to the house created a canopy over the walkway and gave the perfect amount of shade to give extra privacy to the residents of the house. Raido and Ryuu walked underneath the natural roof and finally saw the house, which was just as nice as the grounds. Raido smiled before telling Ryuu what his own father had told him, "Rumor has it that the Hatake Family had a secret paradise located somewhere close to the main grounds, but not very many have ever found it."

Ryuu looked up at Raido with bright eyes, "Wow! I wonder where it's at?" Raido shrugged his shoulders before turning his attention back to the house; even though it was damaged it was still a very nice house.

Raido looked past the group of men and women repairing the front porch and focused his attention on the house as a whole. It was a two story house with old style architecture on the outside, including a slanting roof and large square windows on the second story. The house was painted a white color with a dark roof and deep red shutters. The colors blended together very well, Raido looked closer at the windows and saw a blonde figure waving to him. He smiled and waved back when he noticed Naru, she motioned for them to come up before disappearing from the window.

"Come on Ryuu, I'm going to introduce you to my friends."

* * *

Sakumo rested his chin on his folded hands, elbows on the table, and gave Minato a very inquisitive look. "You want to do what?"

Minato rolled his eyes at Sakumo, "I'm moving in until we get you over this alcohol thing. I know you're a shinobi and have the self-control of a statue, but addictions to alcohol have some very serious withdrawal symptoms and I just want to be sure we don't lose you to them."

Sakumo looked away from Minato, his thoughts going back to his seppuku plans for just a moment before he smiled and agreed with Minato. "Perhaps it would be better if you did stay here a few days. I love Kakashi to death, but I saw a good friend go through alcohol withdrawals and I don't want him to have to deal with that."

Minato nodded, "You know he's going to want to help."

"Yeah I know, but I'd rather not him see me getting violently sick and having the shakes."

Minato chuckled as Sakumo got up and got him a glass of water, "Want anything?"

Minato shook his head, "Are you having those urges for sake yet?"

Sakumo sat back down with his glass of water, "Good God yes, I want a drink so bad right now but I completely threw out my secret stash this morning so I couldn't get a drink even if I wanted it."

"See I knew that genius brain was in there somewhere."

Sakumo chuckled before sighing and finishing his glass of water. "Well Minato come on, we've got to feed everybody outside plus the kids."

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I watched Naru's face break out into a smile as she read the last line of dad's poem. I had stood up and was now standing beside the bed. "I like it Kakashi, and I'm glad he's still alive."

I nodded, "Me too."

She laughed before rolling her eyes and propelling herself forward to tackle hug me and for once I didn't tense up underneath the hug or shy away from the gesture. I let her tackle me and together we dropped to the bed laughing with joy. We had completed a small part of our mission, we had saved my dad. I didn't know how that would affect the future, or even if it would matter, but I did know that I would have my dad with me as I grew. He would actually get to experience everything with me and watch me grow up, everything I had wanted before is now a reality. Naru's laughter was even more contagious as she moved higher up on the bed, closer to the pillows; she looked at me before a very devious look entered her eye.

I stopped laughing long enough to worry about that look in her eyes. "Naru? What are you going to do?" She smiled sweetly at me and I knew I was in trouble, before I could move she had already grabbed a pillow and smacked me with it. I raised an eyebrow at her, and snatched the pillow from her outstretched hands. She blushed before looking down at her feet; I took the advantage and retaliated with my own pillow. It landed squarely on the side of her head and one look from her told me it was war.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Minato stopped talking and turned to look out of the kitchen and in the general direction of the stairs. Sakumo blinked before hearing the noise too and turning the stove off, he followed the noise up the stairs with Minato close behind him. They both stopped outside Sakumo's bedroom door and smiles graced both men's faces as they watched their children have a pillow fight in the middle of Sakumo's bedroom. Sakumo wanted to beat his head against the wall as he watched; just what was he thinking when he decided suicide would be the right answer to his problems? He watched as Kakashi hit Naru with a pillow and his heart ached to know that if he would have succeeded last night, then he would have missed this. He would have missed everything, not only in Kakashi's life but in Naru's too.

Minato almost wanted to get a camera to capture this moment, it was very shocking to see Kakashi act his age but lately it was becoming a very refreshing change. Gone was the little boy he had meet a little over a year ago that only wanted to train and never had time for fun. Naru had changed Kakashi for the better and Minato couldn't help but feel a little prideful of the fact that she was his daughter, all he needed to do was tell Kushina about her and everything would be perfect.

The laughter floated out of the room and seemed to drive away the left over tension from the house and in its place left a very comfortable lightness. Sakumo smiled when he realized what the lightness reminded him of, hope. He lightly touched Minato's shoulder before motioning for them to head back downstairs.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I finally called a truce after both of our pillows tore apart, causing the fluffy stuffing to go everywhere. Kakashi's eyes widened as he fell to the floor, breathing heavily. I giggled and sat down beside him, "That was fun."

He nodded and threw a handful of the white fluff at me. With no effort at all, I dodged the fluff ball and headed to the window. "Hey Scarecrow, Raido's here with some blonde kid. I think it's his brother."

Kakashi nodded, "Well are you going to invite them up?"

I stuck my tongue out at Kakashi before waving Raido up. "I'm going to go meet them and bring them up."

I left and heard Kakashi's yell from Sensei's bedroom, "Hey don't leave me to clean up this mess!"

I kept laughing and went down the stairs two at a time, before opening the door and smiling at the workers. They were working very quickly and had only been here about an hour, Sensei and Dad were making something to eat and drink for them in the kitchen, or at least that was their original idea. I didn't see anything going on in that kitchen besides chatter, but I'm sure they had a good excuse for that. Raido walked up the steps with the blonde haired boy beside him, "Hey guys!"

Raido smiled before waving and introducing his brother, "Hey Naru, this is my younger brother, Ryuu. Ryuu this is my friend Uzu Naru."

Ryuu smiled at me with a slight blush on his cheeks, he gave me a wave before blushing harder and looking at the ground. I smiled back at him before inviting them upstairs. Dad came out of the kitchen with pot of coffee, a bunch of cups and some pancakes on a plate. I guess I was wrong, they actually did cook breakfast.

Sakumo-sensei followed behind him, but stopped before going outside, "We're making some more if there's not enough to go around."

I nodded and he smiled before looking towards Raido, "Good morning Raido and I assume you are Ryuu?"

Ryuu nodded slowly before telling Sensei good morning. "If you get hungry tell Kakashi or Naru, they'll take care of you two." Raido nodded at him before following behind me.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I sighed as I looked at the torn pillows and white fluff, it wasn't that big of a mess but it was a mess. Quickly I picked up the pieces and threw away the ruined pillows. Vaguely I wondered if dad would have a problem with us tearing up two of his pillows. I heard footsteps on the stairs and began thinking back to yesterday's Chunin meeting. I was actually surprised that Raido was here; yesterday he didn't speak to me or Naru.

So I just assumed he agreed with his Sensei about my dad but him showing up today disproved that theory of mine. I walked out of dad's bedroom and hurried to my bedroom to get a mask and to change clothes. I almost never wore my mask inside the house now, but I still wasn't comfortable with having my face seen by others. My family was the only ones I was comfortable with seeing my face, and yes I did consider Minato-sensei and Naru family. Once I made sure my mask was in place, I headed into the hallway to see Naru leading Raido and a nine year old blonde boy.

Raido spoke first, "Hey Kakashi, this is my brother Ryuu."

I greeted him back, "So what brings you two all the way over here?"

Raido smiled, "We're actually here to help with the rebuilding, but I needed to talk to you two first."

I blinked and nodded for him to go on. "Well I realized that I haven't been the greatest of friends lately and I just wanted you two to know that even though I have been kind of distant and everything that I still support you and Sakumo-san. I may not have been throwing stones or calling names but I didn't stop any of that from happening or even try to ask if you guys were okay. That's just as bad as doing the act itself and I wasn't being a very good friend, but I hope you guys can forgive me."

I looked at Naru and saw her softened expression, I hadn't even noticed Raido's behavior because I had been too caught up in saving my dad, but I was glad that he cared enough to apologize for his behavior. "It's no problem Raido, everything's good now."

He smiled brightly and Naru took this chance to interrupt us, "Well there are about fifty people outside that may need help, so let's go help!"

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo and Minato passed out coffee and pancakes, the volunteers were more than happy to take a break and replenish their energy. Sakumo smiled as everyone chatted together and as he realized that this was the first time in weeks that Konoha citizens had been to his house without destroying something or yelling at him. It was a very welcomed change, he handed the last cup of coffee to Ronin. "Ronin, good to see you."

The light haired man smiled before bowing to Sakumo, "It's really good to see you Taichou. I just wanted to say sorry for being so distant these last couple of weeks. You saved my hide once again and I couldn't even grow a spine and stand up for you, but I'm changing that."

"Thanks Ronin and don't let the past couple of weeks bother you. I understand how nasty everybody was and probably will still be, I'm just glad you came this morning."

Ronin took a sip of his coffee before laughing, the first real laugh he had experienced in weeks, "I wouldn't have missed helping you for the world, plus your breakfasts are legendary and I was hungry."

Sakumo laughed before lightly pushing Ronin, then he noticed the slight shaking in his hands. Sakumo quickly stuffed his hands in his pocket before turning back into the house. He pulled his hands out of his pocket and saw the shaking in them increase; Minato gently touched his shoulder, "Is it the withdrawals?"

Sakumo nodded, "It always starts off as shaking hands and I want a drink so bad right now Minato."

Minato looked thoughtful for a moment before bringing Sakumo a sake cup. The White Fang looked at Minato like the man had grown two heads, "I thought the whole point of you being here was to make sure I didn't drink."

Minato rolled his eyes, "We're going to fool your brain into thinking its sake; this should hold you over until everyone outside leaves. I know you don't want anyone knowing about this and I plan to help you keep that secret."

Sakumo just shrugged his shoulders before drinking from the cup, there was the faintest smell of sake on the cup but the drink was all water. That little smell though was enough to make Sakumo's body believe what he was drinking was sake. His hands stopped shaking and his thirst went away.

He handed Minato back the cup, "Let's go help."

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

We headed outside to see Dad and Minato-sensei painting a panel of wood on the wall beside the living room window. Dad looked at me and I saw the thankfulness in his eyes, he had finally realized how idiotic his seppuku idea had been. I eye-smiled back at him before walking over to him, "Can we help?"

Minato-sensei looked at us before nodding, "Yeah go get a bucket of paint and get started on the wall on the other side of the door."

I nodded and together Raido, Ryuu, Naru, and I grabbed buckets of paint to begin painting the wall. The volunteers had begun working on the walls and had by now made their way to the edge of the porch. They had moved very fast, of course it could be just the fact that there were about fifty people working on the project, and were nearly finished with their project. Painting the wall was an interesting experience because between the four of us, none of us could get very high.

I had contemplated using chakra to walk up the wall and paint, but then I'd have to get the footprints out of the paint. It was times like this that I really disliked being short, if I didn't hit a growth spurt soon I was going to go crazy. Dad's voice teasingly floated across the porch, "What's the matter kids? Can't reach?"

Naru glared at him, before threatening him with a paint brush soaked in white paint. "Sensei unless you want to look like your moniker then I suggest keeping the short jokes to yourself." I chuckled at Naru; well if she did cover him in white paint at least he'd really look the part for his name. Dad smirked but before he could retort a new chakra signature entered the clearing and I noticed Ronin tense along with Minato-sensei.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Minato's blood boiled as he felt the very distinct chakra signal of Ryozo, the man just couldn't stay away. The black haired man walked smugly to the front of the house before stopping and laughing at the progress the volunteers had made. "I can't believe you guys are actually trying to help the traitor, this makes all of you just as bad as him."

Sakumo growled at the man before turning to the kids, "All four of you go inside and have breakfast. It looks like we're all taking a short break."

Kakashi protested, "But dad."

"Now Kakashi. Don't make me tell you again." Kakashi fell silent, he knew his dad meant business and he led the others into the kitchen for breakfast.

"Ryozo, haven't you caused enough damage?"

The man laughed before waving at Sakumo, "Wow! Good to see you still alive Sakumo; I would have figured that you would have killed yourself by now."

Sakumo's fists clenched, but he didn't give Ryozo the satisfaction of a comeback; only three people knew how close Sakumo came to actually killing himself. Minato slowly walked towards Ryozo, making sure to step over the nails and wood scattered around the porch and yard. Once he got close enough, he grabbed Ryozo's shoulder in an iron grip and dragged the man away. Ryozo let Minato drag his body around to the back of the house, thinking the man wasn't going to do anything. "What do you think you are doing Namikaze?"

Minato glared at the man in front of him, "Why don't you ask yourself that question Suzuki? Because from what I've seen and heard you've got more to answer to than I do."

Ryozo rolled his eyes and Minato resisted the urge to punch the man, "Sakumo is a traitor."

"No he isn't! I don't know why you've got this personal vendetta against him but it's getting old. I think it's time that you hear something my sensei told me when I was a Genin."

Ryozo snarled, "I'm far from a Genin and I don't need to hear your Sensei's ramblings."

Ryozo turned to walk away, but Minato grabbed his shoulder and pinned the man against the side of the house, "No I think you do."

Minato made sure to grip the sensitive pressure point on Ryozo's collar bone and watched as the man's body reacted to the point by trying to move down the wall. "I think you need to listen loud and clear at what I'm about to tell you. The worse kind of traitor is not the one that betrays country or nindo; no the worse kind of traitor is the one that betrays friends. You call Sakumo a traitor when in reality you are no better than a traitor yourself, the only difference is that one day everyone will forgive the so called mistake you all believe he made, but deep down inside you will always remember the betrayal and it will eat you alive."

Minato released the pressure point and Ryozo quickly straightened, "I'm not telling you again Ryozo, leave the Hatakes alone."

Ryozo left without another word and Minato came back to help Sakumo paint, whistling happily to himself. Sakumo turned to Minato, "What did you do?"

Minato smiled, "We had a little lesson in friendship."

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I watched as Kakashi grabbed glasses for everybody to have breakfast, Ryozo's appearance had put a damper on the light mood that had fallen upon the house since our pillow fight. I opened the stove to find the left over pancakes Sensei had mentioned earlier and set them on the table with some plates. I watched as Raido made sure his little brother had enough before fixing himself a plate. Kakashi handed me a glass and got the orange juice out of the refrigerator before sitting down and getting breakfast. I turned to Ryuu, "So I heard you graduated early."

He blushed slightly before answering, "Yeah I mostly have a genjutsu specialty, I hope to become a master one day."

Kakashi eye-smiled, "Naru and genjutsu don't get along at all. You should train with her and see what I mean."

I kicked him underneath the table as Raido laughed before agreeing with Kakashi. "Well I can see I'm not wanted here."

Ryuu laughed before smiling shyly at me, "Don't listen to them Naru-chan, I'm sure you do the best you can with genjutsu. I would be glad to train with you to help you though."

"Thanks Ryuu, at least somebody believes in me." We ate quickly and hurried back outside to see Dad and Sakumo-sensei working on the upper part of the wall that we couldn't reach. I wanted to ask what happened with Ryozo, but as I was going to ask, another chakra signal began moving close to the house.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I sighed before trying to see who was coming towards the house and hoping they weren't going to cause trouble. I turned to Dad and he smiled at me, "Kakashi, why don't you go greet our guest."

I raised an eyebrow at him, "Okay but why?"

He gave me a gentle push forward, "Trust me you'll want to go greet this guest."

I nodded and walked towards the oncoming chakra signal, the closer I got the more I recognized the woman that was coming up the walkway with a large dog following beside her. Then when I could see the facial markings I knew exactly who she was and instantly thought of Aki. A tiny bit of worry entered my heart as I feared the worst. "Tsume-san."

The older woman smiled and moved a covered bundle in her arms before kneeling in front of me and removing the cover from the bundle. I grinned behind my mask as I saw Aki; she blinked sleepily up at me before happily barking at me. I looked back up into Tsume's eyes, silently asking if Aki was alright, she nodded and motioned for me to take Aki. I picked Aki up from Tsume's arms and smiled wider as she snuggled into the warmth of my arms. "Is she better?"

Tsume nodded, "It was touch and go there for a while, she had several broken ribs and multiple bruising, but I was able to heal her. Just make sure she doesn't do anything too strenuous and you might need to soften her food when you feed her because her teeth were damaged and hard food could cause some pain for her. Other than that, she made a full recovery and her ribs should be fully healed by next week. I also gave her a couple of shots so she might be a little sore later."

Aki slowly raised her head and licked my mask and I gently scratched her behind the ears. "Thank you Tsume-san. Would you like some breakfast while you're here?"

She shook her head, "I've got to get back to my own breakfast."

Dad walked up at that moment and petted Aki, "Thanks for everything Tsume, what do I owe you?"

She laughed, "Absolutely nothing, Kuromaru liked watching the pup and it was the least we could do after everything that's been happening."

The dog, Kuromaru, walked forward and nuzzled Aki before going back to his partner's side, even though the big wolf like dog was intimidating he still had a caring side. Dad placed his hand on my shoulder and we watched the two walk back into the hustle and bustle of the Village. He ruffled my hair, "Come on Ka-chan; let's go finish this porch."

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

By the time noon came around the porch was finished and Kakashi and I had just said goodbye to Raido and Ryuu. We had already made plans to train together later on during the week so Ryuu could practice his genjutsu and I could get more help with my own genjutsu skills. Dad walked into the living room and clapped his hands together, "Okay I'm going to go home and get some clothes."

Sensei snorted before sitting down on the couch, I couldn't help but notice he looked paler than normal. "Bring something back to eat while you're gone."

Dad sighed, "Okay but I'm bringing back ramen."

He left after getting everybody's orders together and promising to be quick. Kakashi sat on the floor with Aki sleeping soundly in his lap. It was good to have the little puppy back in the house, even though she wasn't well enough to play around like she used to.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo watched quietly as Kakashi absentmindedly petted Aki, his son had really missed the little pup. Sakumo's whole body was screaming at him, he wanted and needed a drink. His hands had started shaking again and bile was churning in his stomach. He was going to throw up.

He swallowed the bile and hurried into the hall bathroom, only to make it just in time as the old alcohol and that morning's breakfast came back up. Sakumo had kicked the door shut before he lost his stomach and it didn't surprise him when he heard a small knock at the door. He ignored it as more stomach acid came back up, his throat burned and his eyes watered as the acid passed through his esophagus.

Sakumo coughed the excess out of his throat and into the toilet; his body was spent as he leaned back against the wall and rested his cheek against the coolness of the wood. His whole body hurt and his palms were sweating. If Sakumo didn't feel as horrible as he did then he would have laughed at the irony of it all and how pathetic he knew he looked at that moment. Another knock sounded throughout the bathroom and Sakumo acknowledged it, "Yeah?"

Kakashi's muffled voice came through the door, "Dad? Are you okay?" Sakumo didn't want Kakashi to see him like this; it was bad enough his son knew he had been drinking. He didn't want Kakashi to worry about him.

"Yeah Kakashi, I'm fine. Go back to the living room; I'll be better in a minute." Sakumo heard silence from the other side of the door and after he had deemed himself well enough to make it to the bedroom without making a mess on the floor, he got off of the bathroom floor and went to his bedroom.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

Dad was sick and no matter how hard he tried to hide it, I could still tell. He was paler than normal and his chakra was slightly erratic. When I went to check on him I wasn't surprised to hear him push me away. I knew he wasn't going to let me help him, he still thinks that since I'm a child I shouldn't worry about him. If only he knew how much I do worry about him, then maybe he wouldn't feel bad for letting me help. I sighed as I saw Aki in Naru's lap; at least Minato-sensei would be able to help him.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Minato showed up about an hour later and saw the worry in Kakashi's eyes. "What's going on?"

Naru spoke first, "Sakumo-sensei's sick daddy. He's holed himself up in his room and won't let us come in."

Minato nodded gravely before handing out two boxes of ramen to the kids. Kakashi took his before whispering to Minato, "We want to help too, but he's too stubborn."

Minato ruffled Kakashi's hair, "Sounds like another Hatake I know."

Kakashi eye-smiled at his sensei before beginning to eat his ramen. Minato took the two remaining boxes of ramen and headed upstairs to Sakumo's room. He knocked on the door, "Sakumo let me in."

The lock clicked on the door and Minato was met with the dilated pupils of Hatake Sakumo. "Well you look like death warmed over."

Sakumo rolled his eyes, "Gee thanks and here I was hoping you were going to be helpful."

Minato pushed Sakumo into the room and shut the door after him, "Here eat something."

Sakumo paled at the mention of food, "I think I'll pass."

Minato shook his head, "You've got to eat something or you'll start dry heaving and that's not good for your throat."

The silver haired man admitted defeat and took one of the boxes from Minato's arms. "I'll eat, but I won't be happy while doing it."

True enough to Sakumo's fears, the ramen came back up. Minato patted his friends back as he leaned over the porcelain bowl. "Ugh, Minato."

Minato patted Sakumo's back again and held out a glass of water, "Okay maybe you were right. Ramen might not have been the best thing to give you. Here's some water."

Sakumo took it and washed his mouth out before downing the water. "I am never drinking again."

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

Dad was sick most of the day and Minato-sensei helped him the entire day. I stood outside Dad's bedroom door and heard Dad tell Sensei to get some sleep. Sensei opened the door and smiled at me before pushing me inside. Dad blinked at my sudden appearance, "Come here Kakashi."

I walked forward and he chuckled before picking my up and sitting me beside him on the bed. "I just want to say I'm sorry for everything that has happened these last couple of weeks. I'm sorry for pushing you away and I'm sorry for almost leaving you."

I smiled at him, "You don't have to apologize; I just want to help you now."

Dad shook his head, "Not with this. I'm going to be too sick and I don't want you to see me like that."

I felt anger course through my veins, I needed to help him. Why couldn't he see that? "But Dad, I want to help."

Dad sighed before getting out of bed and flipping out the lights, "You want to help? Okay I used to drink the heaviest at night and though I think I can stay away from the alcohol I'm not entirely sure I can. I need someone to make sure I stay here and away from the sake. Can you do that?"

I nodded and he smiled before getting into bed beside me, I snuggled close to his warmth and contently sighed as I closed my eyes. I would know if he left my side.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Naru walked to Minato's door and knocked gently. He opened the door and smiled at her before scooping her up in his arms. She hugged him, "Goodnight daddy." He placed her back on the ground and watched as she walked back to her room. Minato knew at that moment that he wanted to bring her home. He was telling Kushina as soon as she returned to Konoha.

Sakumo smiled as he watched Kakashi drift off into sleep, his eyes landed on the incriminating bruise on his cheek for just a moment. He looked away from the mark and closed his eyes. He was determined to never drink again, even if it killed him.

* * *

Rafu stood in front of the Third Hokage, "The mission should be pretty simple but your team is going to need someone who knows traps. I have the perfect shinobi in mind for your team."

Rafu nodded, "Who is it Hokage-sama?"

"Uzu Naru."

Rafu sucked a breath in, "Hatake's student?"

The Third nodded, "Yes, I hope you can forget your differences and complete the mission. She needs the field experience and you need her demolition skills."

Rafu nodded, he would agree to watch the brat but he wasn't going to like it. "When do we leave?"

The Hokage looked at the papers on his desk before answering, "You leave in three days."

* * *

It took Sakumo three days to stop throwing up everything he ate, but that didn't mean his withdrawal symptoms were over. The shaking in his hands had decreased but his body was still plagued with random bouts of fatigue and sickness. Minato feared that Sakumo had damaged his liver with the huge amount of alcohol he had drunk, but they couldn't find that out unless they took him to the hospital.

The hospital was not even an option for Sakumo, if word got back to the Council then there was a good chance it would be used against him. Minato didn't doubt they would try to take both Kakashi and Naru away from him and Sakumo wouldn't survive the separation. Sakumo sat at the kitchen table and slowly chewed on crackers, his stomach could handle those just fine. The only real progress Minato had seen was that Sakumo was back into training, his body was weakened from weeks of not training, but Naru and Kakashi were helping him get back into shape.

Minato smiled, they were enjoying whipping Sakumo back into shape more than they should, though it was a slow process because he was experiencing withdrawal symptoms and couldn't go very long without having an episode. A knock sounded on the front door and Sakumo got up from the table to see who it was. Raido stood at the door, "Hello Sakumo-san, I need to see Naru."

"Okay she's around back if you want to go see her."

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I saw Raido come around the edge of the house and waved him over to where Kakashi and I were practicing kenjutsu drills. Our skills had gotten sharp and we had even found time to make up a few techniques together. "Hey Rai. What brings you all the way over here?"

"A mission actually, you've been recommended to accompany my team on a C-ranked mission."

I blinked, this was interesting, "What would I be doing?"

"We needed someone with demolition skills and the Hokage said you needed the field experience, plus it would only be about a week long mission."

I thought this over for a moment before turning to Kakashi, "Is it a good idea?"

He eye-smiled at me, "Of course it's a good idea. You need the experience and I figured the Hokage would start sending us with separate teams soon."

I turned back towards Raido and smiled, "When do we leave?"

He blushed, "Well you see that's the thing, we leave in two hours."

My eyes widened, "Why so soon?"

He laughed,"Rafu-sensei just told us today, so there really wasn't time to tell you."

Kakashi and I both looked at each other; Rafu was going to be my team leader. I didn't know if this was such a good idea anymore. "Rafu's going to be in charge?"

Raido nodded, "Yes but don't worry about him. He'd never do anything to sabotage the mission."

I wanted to believe him, but something in my gut told me he was wrong. I ignored my gut feeling and told Raido I would be ready in a few minutes. I entered the kitchen and told both of the men at the table that I had a mission. Dad sighed before asking, "How long is it going to last?"

"About a week according to Raido."

Dad looked worried and Sensei smiled at me, "Be careful Naru. Who's the team leader?"

I looked at the floor, "Rafu-sensei is the team leader."

A dark look passed over Sensei's eyes, "Well he might get under my skin, but he's loyal to everyone that's not me."

I smiled at his joke and Dad gave me a quick hug, "Be really careful Naru." I nodded my head and promised I would. I got all of my stuff together and headed out the door, the feeling in my gut only burned more.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I didn't see Dad a lot during the day, his symptoms sometimes had him hugging the toilet for hours, plus he was also trying to sleep off the symptoms. I only saw him at night when I took my turn at helping him. Secretly I had been looking for some type of cure for him. I knew Minato-sensei was worried about his liver, but we couldn't take him to the hospital. I had searched and scanned library shelves and bookstores but had come up empty every time.

It was frustrating to be considered a genius but yet my genius brain couldn't come up with a solution to this problem and on top of that I was stuck training and eating by myself since Naru had left on her mission earlier. The training he was doing with us did help with his symptoms but it still wasn't enough. In frustration I threw a pillow across the living room floor. Aki barked at it before pouncing on it. I mumbled to myself, "At least Aki's better."

I tensed as I felt a hand land on my shoulder and I turned to look into the smiling face of my Sensei. "Hey Kakashi I don't think that pillow ever did anything to you."

I smiled slightly before going to glare at the pillow, no it hadn't done anything to me, but I couldn't handle the frustration I felt right now. "I'm just frustrated Sensei."

Sensei nodded and ruffled my hair, "I bet you're feeling a little left out too." I stilled, dang he was good.

Sensei reached down and picked me up; of course I fought against him. He pinched the skin on my side lightly to get me to stop, I truly loathed being small. Sensei carried me upstairs and into the bedroom he was occupying until Dad got better. He unceremoniously dropped me on the bed before digging through his clothes pack. I pouted at him and soon he found what he was looking for. He tossed an old book at me, I caught it in one hand before staring at the title of the book; it simply said 'folktales'.

I raised an eyebrow at Sensei, "So what is this supposed to be?"

He smirked, "Well it's a book and you're supposed to read it."

"Gee thanks Sensei I would have never figured it out without you."

Sensei laughed at my sarcasm, "Just read it 'kashi, it'll give you something to do while your dad's sick and while I'm out training."

I blinked, "You're going training?"

He nodded, "Yeah I've done told your dad that I'm going because I can't risk getting rusty and I think I've been in this house way too long."

He left and I went to sit on the couch and flipped through the old book, my eyes barely reading the titles until I came to one that stood out, 'White Sake'. I almost wanted to slam the book shut and throw it across the room; sake had nearly ruined my father. I looked at the book once more and let curiosity get the better of me. I wanted to know what the story was about.

 **There once lived a man named Yurine, a man of poor means and a lover of sake. He never went a day without drinking his favorite drink and it wasn't long before he became ill. He wasn't able to stomach his beloved sake and he knew his life was ending. He called on his fourteen year old son, Koyuri, to fetch him a cup or two of sake before he died.**

 **Young Koyuri searched long and hard for the sake his father adored, but he couldn't find any anywhere in the house and he didn't have any money to buy his father the drink. Koyuri began searching for anyway to help his father and his searching led him to a beach where two mysterious people, a man and a woman, called out to him by name. Fearful, but curious, Koyuri approached the strange couple and saw them drinking the whitest sake he had ever seen.**

 **The young boy begged for some sake to take back to his dying father, the couple immediately filled his gourd for him. Koyuri hurried back home and gave his father the sake, his father greedily drank the sake and the next day asked for more. For five days Koyuri went back to the mysterious couple and filled his gourd up for his father, and during those five days his father gradually began to regain strength and life.**

 **There was another man that lived in the same village as Koyuri and his father; this was a nasty man by the name of Mamikiko. After he heard about the wonderful sake Koyuri was bringing his father, he confronted the boy and stole the gourd from him. The man's face twisted in disgust as he spit out the horrible tasting sake and poured the entire contents of the gourd on the ground. Koyuri cried out and Mamikiko forced the boy to take him to the mysterious couple on the beach. There Koyuri explained what Mamikiko had done to the sake and asked for more for his father. The mysterious couple refilled his gourd before turning their attention to the man.**

 **The mysterious couple revealed that the white sake was sacred sake and that those who drink it live forever and all diseased of their body would be cured. The white sake flushed the disease away from the body and gave life. The only thing was that the white sake was only good tasting to the righteous and bad tasting to the evil. The mysterious man pointed towards Mamikiko and told him that he knew he was an evil, wicked, selfish man because of how the sake tasted to him. The mysterious man then laughed before telling Mamikiko that the white sake would act as a poison to his body and kill him because of his evilness.**

 **Mamikiko fell to the ground and begged for repentance, the mysterious man smiled before giving him powder from a case and telling him that it was better to repent in your old age instead of not at all. He gave Mamikiko a cup of the sacred sake and this time Mamikiko tasted sweetness and it could feel the sake strengthening him.**

 **Years later Yurine and Mamikiko brewed the white sake from a recipe from the mysterious couple and gave it to all suffering from sake poisoning. They lived for 300 years.**

I shut the book and blinked, it was an interesting story and it had actually given me an idea about helping dad. If the white sake was able to flush out the disease and sickness from Koyuri's father, could there be a jutsu that does the same thing? Could I find a medical jutsu that would flush the alcohol out of my father's system and more importantly his liver?

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Rafu looked at Naru with slight annoyance; he was trying his hardest to get the girl to yell at him. He had given her every single bit of grunt work, including gathering firewood and fetching water, but she hadn't complained once. He watched her and Raido talk to each other as they cooked supper, he kind of admired the girl for putting up with him. Then again this was only the first night and Rafu was sure Naru would complain before the end of the mission. He was making it his personal duty to see that it happened.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

The next morning came way too early for me, but I had a personal mission to complete today. I had to find some kind of medical jutsu that would fit what I needed. My first and hopefully last stop was the hospital. I knew there was a medical record room near the poison treatment part of the hospital on the fourth floor that held not only patient records but also jutsu records, the jutsu records being more easily accessible than the patient records.

I silently made my way up to the fourth floor and found the room that I needed fairly quickly. I was reaching to turn the doorknob when I heard the sound of heels clicking against the polished floor. I made my way to the nearest bench and sat on it, hoping that I looked like an innocent child.

The woman wearing the clicking heels came into view and even at only seven years old I knew the lady wearing them was pretty. Hey I may barely remember being a teenager, but I remember enough to know what pretty looks like. For one thing she had amazing legs, Naru would have smacked me for being perverted if she heard me say that, but this lady did have a nice pair of legs. She wasn't overly pretty and she didn't flaunt it like others would have. She had nice brown hair that was very straight and light blue eyes.

She looked to be about my father's age if not younger and she had a smile that made you want to talk to her. She stopped after seeing me and knelt down to my level. "Hi, I'm Tohru are you lost?"

I shook my head, "No I was told to wait here."

Tohru looked at me skeptically before smiling and ruffling my hair. She walked down the hall before turning around and smirking, "Okay I'll bite. You're hiding something from me."

I narrowed my eyes at her, "How could you tell?"

Her next smile was one I had seen countless times on the face of Naru, "I couldn't, you just gave yourself away."

I blinked and resisted the urge to slap myself on the forehead, dang she was good. "Okay I'm up to something. What's it to you?"

She walked back to me and sat down beside me, "Well it must be something big if you've gotten this far without being caught and would lie to me in order to get it. I know you're no spy or enemy ninja so I can't help but wonder why you would go through all the trouble of getting up here."

I looked at her and wondered if I could trust her with my personal mission. She looked honest enough and she did work here so maybe she would know something I didn't. "I'm looking for a jutsu to flush a substance out of the body."

Her eyes widened, "A substance? What kind of substance?"

I gently tapped my foot against the leg of the bench, "Alcohol."

She scratched her chin in thought before motioning me to follow her into the record room. The light clicked on and revealed rows of file cabinets and shelves of scrolls. It would have taken me years to find the right one. Tohru made her way across the room and stopped before one of the big shelves with a bunch of multicolored scrolls. She pulled one off of the bottom shelf and handed it to me.

I looked at the scroll before opening it and reading the first line. Chakra could be pushed through the body and along the internal organs to flush out any trace of alcohol and heal any damage caused to the body. It took perfect chakra control but didn't necessarily have to be done by a medical ninja; a Jounin could easily perform the jutsu if they knew what they were doing. I looked back at Tohru, "Can I take this with me?"

She nodded, "Just have it back before they do the inventory at the beginning of the year." I nodded and thanked her before hurrying home.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Minato followed closely as Kakashi raced excitedly into Sakumo's bedroom and jumped onto the bed, waking Sakumo up from his nap. "I've found a cure!"

He held out the scroll for Minato to look at and soon Minato was smiling. He handed the scroll off to Sakumo who read it and looked back at Minato, "Can you do it?"

"Shouldn't be hard, the real question is, are you willing to be my guinea pig?"

Sakumo shrugged his shoulders, "I've got nothing better to do and if this means I can actually stop throwing up everything I eat then I'm all for it."

Kakashi's eyes were bright as Sakumo agreed. Minato just shook his head, "Well let's get started."

* * *

Night had fallen and Sakumo sat in his bed talking to Kakashi. Minato had performed the flushing jutsu and Sakumo had never felt better. He was actually able to keep a meal down and he wasn't crippled by the desire to drink. In fact his body felt like he had never even taken one sip.

Sakumo pulled Kakashi into his lap and gave his only child a hug. "Kakashi, where in the world did you get the idea of finding that jutsu?"

Kakashi blushed before untangling his father's arms from around his body and leaving the room. A few minutes later Kakashi came back with the old folktale book. "Well there's this story in here called the White Sake and it sparked my idea."

Sakumo took the book from Kakashi and flipped to the page that was dog-eared. He scanned the page before handing it back to his son; Kakashi took the book and looked into Sakumo's eyes. "Want me to read it to you dad?"

Sakumo grinned at his son, "You've done more than enough for me, but if you want to then yes."

Kakashi looked at his dad before similing, "I'm your son, it's kind of my job."

The White Fang chuckled as he remembered his own words from months ago. He smiled before placing Kakashi beside him. Kakashi's young voice began reciting the tale of a boy named Koyuri, his father's illness, and the sacred sake that cured alcohol poisoning.

* * *

Danzo's fingernails buried into his palms, drawing blood as his Root ANBU agent told him that Sakumo survived the night. "I thought you said he was going to kill himself. I should be hearing about his funeral plans not about him getting back on his feet!"

The shinobi in front of him didn't move or make a sound, "What happened to the girl?"

The shinobi answered, "She was sent on a mission sir."

Danzo's eyes flashed, "You said the boy was the reason Sakumo didn't kill himself?"

The shinobi nodded, "Yes sir."

Danzo growled, "Dismissed."

The shinobi nodded before disappearing. Danzo sighed loudly before sitting at his desk. He would still get the girl and perhaps the boy, he would just have to rework his tactics and Sakumo's guilt was going to become his crutch.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I took a deep breath and counted to five, Rafu-sensei was trying his hardest to get me riled up. I refused to let him see me get mad. I smiled sweetly back at him before answering his question, "No I don't mind taking two watches and yes I'll just sleep outside the tent so I don't wake you guys up when I have to get up twice."

There was one thing I had been taught by the Third Hokage that stuck more than any other lesson and that was kill them with kindness. Rafu smirked before ordering everyone to sleep. I sat outside and watched the fire flicker in the night, above me the skies opened and rain fell to the earth.

My left eye twitched as I sat in the pouring rain and I couldn't help but wonder if I renamed my katana from _Tsukiakari_ to 'kindness' would that be the same thing.


	20. Oneshot 2

**Oneshot 2**

* * *

Kakashi sat on the living room floor and wrapped the final Christmas present before placing it underneath the tree with the other ones. He could see his father's writing on many of them, each bore a different name and all were different shapes and sizes. The smell of Christmas was all around the house, his father and Naru had began baking Christmas treats last week and the combined smell of fudge and cookies seemed to permanently stick to the house. It was a little nauseating to Kakashi, but he found himself getting use to the smell.

Kakashi was shaken from his thoughts as he saw Minato walk through the front door holding three black bags, two seemed to be filled with boxes, while the third wasn't as filled. Minato cheerfully called Naru into the room and asked her to put the two bulky bags into his room before handing her a bunch of neatly folded clothes. Minato whispered softly into Naru's ear and she smiled brightly before agreeing wholeheartedly and promising he wouldn't be disappointed.

Minato turned to Kakashi as Naru disappeared upstairs, "Where's Sakumo?"

Kakashi blinked, "He said he was going to be at the Hokage Tower all day, something about getting reregistered."

Minato nodded before smiling, "We have a mission and this is your uniform for the mission."

Kakashi's eye twitched as he looked at the uniform Minato had said was needed for his next mission. Minato's smile covered his entire face as he held the green and red horror up for his student, "Come on 'kashi, it's for the kids."

Kakashi furiously shook his head, "I'm a ninja not an elf."

Minato sighed, "Kakashi, the Hokage needed someone to play Santa Claus for the orphanage and I'm the only adult that was available at the time so I took the mission. Now I need two helpers and you and Naru fit the elf costumes almost perfectly."

Kakashi shook his head, "The answer is no Sensei. Naru can play dress up, but I refuse."

Kakashi began walking away from his Sensei only to find himself being held back by a large hand. He turned to look back at Minato and saw a very devious look in his Sensei's eyes. "Kakashi I'm giving you two choices, you either do this mission and wear this costume or I sign you up for D-ranked missions for the next month."

Kakashi rolled his eyes and Minato felt the need to take his seven year old student down a few pegs, "And when I say D-ranked missions I mean missions reserved for rookie Genin, babysitting, weed pulling, filing, cleaning out the river, garbage sorting, and of course dog walking." Still this didn't seem to faze his Chunin student, "Okay Kakashi you want to be stubborn I'll play hardball."

Minato put the costume on the couch and began walking towards the door; Kakashi raised an eyebrow before calling out, "Sensei? What are you doing?"

Minato never turned around as he reached for the door handle, "I'm going to talk to the Hokage about sending you back to the Academy to sit through the Civilian Interaction class because obviously you missed the lesson that taught you about ninjas helping their community in any way possible."

Kakashi's eyes widened as he heard his Sensei's threat, he was almost positive it was a bluff, but the longer Kakashi stayed quiet, the further away Minato moved and the closer he got to the Hokage Tower. Kakashi quickly tried to make his decision, be forced to endure the ridicule and embarrassment of being forced to reenter the Academy or suffer through an evening of wearing the most atrocious costume he had ever seen in his short life.

Kakashi swallowed his pride and opened the door to call out to Minato, "Sensei."

Minato grinned to himself before turning around; Kakashi had fallen for his bluff. He mentally rejoiced, Naru had been all for dressing up like an elf to entertain the orphans but he knew Kakashi would be harder to convince. It did help though that Minato knew Kakashi's buttons and which ones he would need to push to get him to agree. "Yes Kakashi?"

Kakashi sighed before speaking, "Okay I'll do it, but you've got to promise to not send me back to the Academy and to not sign me up for those D-ranked missions."

Minato smiled brightly and at that moment Kakashi knew he had been played by the blonde man, "Agreed! Let's go get your costume on!"

* * *

Naru stood in her room at the Hatake house and looked her costume up and down as it lay on her bed. She was very excited about getting to be one of Santa's helpers for the orphanage, she could vaguely remember meeting Santa as a child, but she was very fuzzy on the details. Her Dad had told her it was a special event they performed every year for the orphanage and from what she could tell, he was very excited to be playing Santa this year. Naru giggled as she took the white and green candy cane stripped stockings off the bed and began putting them on, her mind wondering how her Dad was going to get Kakashi into his costume.

Naru knew better than anybody that Kakashi practically ran from anything that made him look cute and adorable, and she had a feeling the elf costume was one of those things. Naru slipped the red one piece dress of the costume on over her head and quickly tied large green sash around her middle to make a belt. She straightened her long sleeves around her arms and fiddled with the fluffy cuffs before looking in the mirror.

Naru looked herself up and down before putting on her shoes and hat. The red one piece dress ended slightly below her knees and puffed out. The hem of the dress was adorned with white fur, as was the cuffs of the long sleeves. The green sash was tied in the back and the ends of the sash fell behind Naru. She smiled as she looked at her favorite part of the costume, the green and white stripped stockings. They covered whatever the dress missed and would keep her warm, plus it helped that they were unusual because Naru liked unusual.

Naru sat in her bed and carefully slipped on her shoes, the toe of the green shoes came to a point before curling upwards. The curled ends also contained two little silver bells that would jingle merrily with every step Naru took. To finish off her costume Naru placed a red and green Santa hat on top of her head, but her unbound hair made it difficult for the hat to stay on. Naru sighed before walking over to her dresser and getting out two pony-tail holders, her shoes jingling with every step.

She quickly pulled her hair into low pig-tails that would fall over her shoulders. With a final look in the mirror, Naru deemed herself ready to show her Dad the costume and to see how far he had gotten with Kakashi.

* * *

Kakashi stood before Minato in boxers and a white wife beater, his mask firmly in place. "Come on 'kashi, you've got to remove the mask."

Kakashi shook his head, "I agreed to wear the costume, but I never said the mask would come off."

Minato ran a hand through his hair in frustration, "What kind of elf wears a black mask?"

Kakashi stared straight into his Sensei's eyes as he answered, "A ninja elf."

The blonde man just sighed, "Fine wear the mask, but remember my dear little student, you owe me one now." Kakashi shrugged off the ominous voice of his Sensei and the sinking feeling he was getting in his stomach as he mentally prepared himself to take on his one hundred percent cotton enemy.

Minato sat on the bed and handed Kakashi the red and white stockings that no boy should ever be forced to wear. Through his mask, Minato could see Kakashi's nose scrunch up in disgust at the article of clothing before slipping them on. "You know you could leave."

Minato snorted, "And risk you running away, no way." Minato handed him the dark green long sleeved jacket that Kakashi took begrudgingly before slipping it over his head. The red baggy shorts were handed to him next and finally a red belt was fixed around his waist. Minato pushed Kakashi to look at the mirror before a giving him the final pieces of his outfit.

Kakashi wanted to die as he saw himself in his costume for his mission; the red and white stockings were simply horrible. They were tight and irritating, not to mention he was pretty sure only girls wore stockings. He sighed before looking at the red shorts that ended at his knees and puffed out slightly along the side. His shorts looked like someone had tried to fill them up with air.

Kakashi stopped a groan from escaping his lips before focusing on the dark green jacket; it wasn't as bad as the other pieces of the costume. The jacket had been tailored to be longer in the back than in the front, so it lessened the puffiness of his shorts. The red belt was okay too, just a little too big for his taste. Minato finally handed his student the red and green Santa hat and the green pointy shoes. Kakashi couldn't stop his groan as he saw the two silver bells hooked onto the point of the green shoes.

He gave Minato a pleading look that was quickly shot down by the older man, sighing in defeat; Kakashi slipped on the shoes and placed the hat over his silver hair.

A knock sounded in Kakashi's bedroom and he walked over to the door to open it, Minato tried to hide his laughter as he watched Kakashi try his hardest to walk without setting off the bells. The bells were apparently one enemy Kakashi could not defeat; they jingled merrily with every calculated step he took.

Kakashi opened the door and saw Naru standing there in her own costume with a sweet smile on her face, "You look very…."

Kakashi growled slightly, "Finish that sentence and face my wrath."

Naru smirked, "I was going to say you look very gruff and small children would cry at the very sight of your shadow."

Kakashi nodded before turning back around and walking to the bed, bells still jingling with every step. Minato grinned at his elves, "Okay now I've got to go get dressed and then we can head over to the orphanage and get ready to meet the kids." Minato left his elves, one with a look of complete happiness and the other, well he looked liked he'd rather be facing down a whole squadron of Iwa ninjas than dressing up as an elf.

It didn't take long for Minato to get ready; he wore the standard Santa Claus costume, complete with large red suit and white beard. He even stuffed a pillow down the front of the suit to make his belly larger and ever more perfect for the multiple children that would sit on his lap and receive their presents. Minato came out of his temporary bedroom with two black bags filled with wrapped presents, each bearing a specific name; he headed into the living room to see that his elves had already moved into there. He placed both bags on the floor before belting out, "Ho, Ho, Ho; Merry Christmas!"

Naru giggled and even Kakashi eye-smiled at his antics, "Well don't I have a couple of fine looking helpers here. Now I need you two to head over to the orphanage with these bags it's the job of Santa's helpers to entertain the kids. In one of the bags you'll find some candy canes, but make sure they don't try to seek a peek at the presents. I'll be there shortly." Both of the kids grabbed a bag and took off to the orphanage, the sounds of bells following behind them.

* * *

Minato smiled as he watched them leave, the party wasn't until 2:00 pm, and it was only noon. That would give him, Sakumo, and Kushina plenty of time to finish for Naru and Kakashi's Christmas surprise.

He whistled shrilly and was soon answered with two more shrill whistles.

Sakumo and Kushina appeared at the door, both smiling, carrying wrapping paper and presents.

* * *

Kakashi and Naru waited for an hour and a half before they began to worry if Minato was coming or not. The kids had long since finished off almost all of the candy canes and were constantly trying to get into the bags to see the presents. There were at least twenty kids at the orphanage, and that was too many kids for just two sets of eyes. One small boy walked up to Kakashi, poked him in the stomach, and asked why he was wearing a mask.

Kakashi bit off a sarcastic comment before telling him that he didn't like to have his face shown. The boy took one final look at him, kicked him in the shin and ran away. Naru of course found all of this hilarious. Naru finally caught all of their attentions, "Okay let's play a game until Santa gets here. We're going to play find the last candy cane."

A little girl with brown hair raised her hand, "Did you already hide the candy cane?"

Naru shook her head, "No but I'm going to give it to Kakashi and when I say start you guys can see if you can find the candy cane."

Naru removed the very last candy cane from her pocket, but before she could hand it to Kakashi, a voice screamed from the back of the group. "She said start! Get the candy cane." The last thing Kakashi and Naru saw were a sea of kids all running towards the single candy cane held in Naru's outstretched arm.

* * *

Minato smiled as Sakumo placed the last plate of cookies on the table, "Well it looks like we've outdone ourselves."

Sakumo laughed before agreeing, "I just hope they're not too mad about having to spend two hours down there by themselves."

Minato rolled his eyes, "What's the worst that could happen to them?"

Kushina walked into the room wearing a Mrs. Claus outfit, complete with red velvet cloak white fur lining, "Minato, why did you insist that I be Mrs. Claus?"

Minato turned and smiled at his girlfriend, "Because Sakumo can't fill the dress out like you can."

Kushina rolled her eyes, "Gee thanks Minato for that vote of confidence."

Minato turned to Sakumo, "You know what to do right?"

Sakumo nodded, "Yep, I'm going to the Hokage Tower and after I meet them I'll bring them back here for their own meeting with Santa Claus."

Minato nodded and grabbed Kushina, "Come along dear, we've got a party to attend."

Kushina smiled sweetly before twisting his thumb, "Call me dear again and I'll break your thumb."

Minato's eyes widened, "Yes Ma'am."

* * *

Kakashi and Naru managed to untangle themselves from the sea of arms and legs just as Minato and Kushina walked into the room. The kids instantly lined up and tried to look like little angels, Kakashi snorted before walking over to his Sensei, "You're late."

Minato smiled behind his white beard, "No the party didn't start till 2:00 pm, you were early." He quickly turned to the twenty boys and girls and greeted them with a jolly laugh before sitting down on the plush chair provided for him. Kushina stood beside the line of kids to manage crowd control while Kakashi and Naru found the correct presents for each child there.

The party wasn't as bad as Kakashi thought it was going to be, once Santa got there everything moved very smoothly and the kids settled down to play with their toys. Naru was too busy smiling and trying to spread Christmas cheer to even notice Kakashi gently kick a wayward ball back to its owner, who happily kicked it back. The two began a small game of kick ball before Kakashi was called away by Minato, who was trying to kiss Kushina underneath the mistletoe.

The red haired Mrs. Claus gently pushed Santa away before walking out the door, Minato quickly called Kakashi over and handed him a stack of papers. "I need you and Naru to do me a favor and take these to the Hokage Tower."

"Sure Sensei, we'll just go home and change first."

Another devious smile spread across Minato's face, "Nope, I told you that you owed me one. You two will take those to the Hokage Tower just as you are." Before Kakashi could protest Minato had disappeared.

Naru and Kakashi said their goodbyes and began walking down the street that leads into the busy marketplace, even on Christmas Eve the marketplace was busy, he bells on their shoes jingling with every step and echoing against the dirt road. As Kakashi and Naru finally made their way into the marketplace, they were met with unbearable reactions.

Most of the women, regardless of ninja status or not, thought they were both adorable, Kakashi especially. "Aww look how cute they are. I bet he's really adorable underneath that mask." Kakashi's eye twitched and Naru tried to comfort him to no avail. Even some of the men commented on how cute the young Chunin looked in their elf costumes. Kakashi felt his cheeks burn as they made their way out of the marketplace and up the stairs of the Hokage Tower.

Shinobi were stopping and smiling at their youngest comrades before going about their way, well a couple Kunoichi stopped to pinch Kakashi's cheeks and gush over Naru's costume. The young Chunin finally made their way into the missions room and delivered their mission reports, Sakumo was waiting in the room was a smile on his face. "Well don't you two look nice? Did you have fun being an elf?"

Kakashi glared harshly at his father, Ronin tapped his captain on the arm, "Sakumo if looks could kill I believe you would be dead."

Sakumo waved it off and watched as Kakashi stormed off, "Where are you going son?"

Kakashi turned around, "I'm going to find my dignity. I seemed to have dropped it somewhere between here and the house."

Sakumo smiled before fixing Naru's hat to sit better on her head, "Kakashi, you're not old enough to have dignity yet. Now come on let's go home."

Sakumo walked slightly ahead of the kids as they neared the house, he turned to his young elves before asking, "I wonder if you two were good enough this year to be visited by Santa Claus?"

Naru giggled and Kakashi smiled at his father's eagerness, Sakumo quickly pushed the door opened and watched as they went into a living room completely redecorated and filled with Christmas cheer. Minato stood in his Santa suit by the Christmas tree with two presents in his hands, "Well I guess you two did a really good job with the kids today and Kakashi actually wore the red and white stockings so I guess you two were good enough to be on the Nice List this year."

Kakashi smiled, "Can we change first?"

Sakumo laughed before nodding for them to change, "Hurry back so we can open presents."

* * *

An hour later Kakashi and Naru were in the middle of the living room with torn wrapping paper thrown all around them. Aki sat happily beside Kakashi chewing on her bone shaped chew toy and happily enjoying the warmth of her owner. Kakashi was laid on his stomach happily reading his own copy of the folktale book, making sure to reread the White Sake. Naru sat beside him and looked through a ramen recipe book. Minato held the mistletoe over Kushina, "I'm determined for someone to get kissed underneath this mistletoe. Come on Kushina, it's a tradition for at least one person to get kissed underneath the mistletoe during Christmas."

Kushina smiled before plucking the mistletoe out of Minato's hands, "Okay two can play at that game."

Kushina smiled as she strolled over to Sakumo, "Merry Christmas Sakumo."

She held the mistletoe over his head and kissed his unmasked cheek.

The man smiled, "Merry Christmas to you too Kushina. Now go kiss him before he has a heart attack."

Minato stared in shock before pouting, "My girlfriend just left me for my best friend." Kushina laughed before kissing Minato on the lips, effectively shutting him up.

Kakashi stopped reading his book long enough to grab a piece of wrapping paper, roll it into a ball, and toss it at Naru. She retaliated with her own wrapping paper ball. Sakumo smiled as he watched Minato and Kushina kiss before turning to watch Kakashi and Naru have a miniature war in his living room.

He shook his head and picked up Aki, who had left the danger zone as soon as the paper balls starting flying, he scratched her behind the ear before whispering to the not so quiet house,

"Merry Christmas."


	21. Chapter 18

**Chapter 18**

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Rafu stood in front of the four young shinobi in the middle of their temporary camp just on the outskirts of the target village and read the mission to them. Three of those shinobi being the students he had personally trained and the last being a blonde haired little girl that had been put under his command, his protection. At first he had been convinced he would hurt Sakumo through her and he had even spent the last two days trying to get Naru to crack, unfortunately his plans were failing horribly; not even a night spent in the soaking rain could get the girl to blow up at him. Rafu admired her control and for a moment he wondered if his original assumption of the girl was wrong, she may have been young but she was mature and was handling herself very well.

Rafu looked at his three students; they had grown so much in the span of a year. Raido had transformed from a shy and unconfident boy to an outspoken and capable young man. If Rafu had to choose, Raido would be his most prized student, he was the one that took his lessons to heart and Rafu wasn't blind, he knew Raido looked up to Sakumo. He could see it in the young shinobi's eyes whenever Rafu cursed the White Fang.

The other boys of his team had grown just as much as Raido had in their year together. Kenji, the bold and brash son of civilian parents, had actually calmed down since his Genin days and was becoming an excellent medical ninja. Tenshi, the one with near perfect aim and a love of anything sharp, had gone from focusing just on his weapons to becoming a well rounded shinobi. Rafu believed for that moment that no matter how he badly he had screwed up the other parts of his life, he had actually done something right with his students.

Rafu washed all sentimental thoughts from his mind as he began to debrief the younger shinobi. "Okay the mission is simple; Iwa is storing supplies in a warehouse on the outskirts Rokku, we need to get in and destroy the thing from inside out. Which is why Naru's here, her demolition skills will come in handy."

The four Chunin nodded towards their commanding officer. Rafu laid out a map of the warehouse on the ground and began pointing out entry points, "Getting in shouldn't be hard, especially for Naru. I think she's gotten enough practice back home to effectively get us into the warehouse."

Rafu didn't know what possessed him to tease the girl, but she flashed him a small smile as Raido chuckled quietly, "Naru once in, you have exactly three hours to set up the explosives and get out. We need this done quickly and quietly. Raido, I'm sending you in there as the bodyguard along with me. We'll take care of any guards we meet and distract them so Naru can get her stuff done. Tenshi I need you on long range defense, get into the attic and see if you can take out any enemy on the ground. Kenji, I want you to stick close to Naru and help her with the demolition."

The blacked haired, blue eyed boy scrunched his nose up, "But Sensei, what if Naru doesn't need my help. Wouldn't I just be in the way?"

Rafu ruffled the boy's black hair, "I want you to stay close by her so you can heal her if she gets injured; we need her to complete the mission."

Kenji nodded and turned to Naru, "I've got your back Naru-chan."

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

To say I was nervous was an understatement, this was not only my first mission where I was using my demolition skills, but it was my first mission without my dad, Sakumo-sensei or Kakashi. Plus I had to be under the command of a man that hated my Sensei and had tried his hardest to make me miserable the entire two days we traveled together. I can honestly say that my patience has increased threefold since I began this mission and now it was time to get started.

My temporary teammates were pretty cool, Kenji and Tenshi were really nice and both had secretly helped me with all the work while Rafu wasn't looking. Kenji really was a very kind soul, his jokes the morning after the rain storm kept me from murdering Rafu as he smiled at me before innocently telling me I should have come inside the tent. Plus, even though I assured him I wouldn't catch a cold, he insisted on checking me over. I rarely got sick, but I guess it is better safe than sorry.

Tenshi reminded me so much of Tenten, right down to the brown eyes and dark brown hair, then there was his love of weapons that automatically made me think of the weapons mistress. I couldn't help but smile at the fact that I could still remember my teenage years and Genin years, but I was losing my childhood memories fast. Kakashi had once mentioned that he didn't remember any of the little details of his childhood before his thirteenth birthday, we really needed to see the Hokage about getting another look at that book. I had too many unanswered questions for my likes.

Kenji snapped me out of my thoughts, "I've got your back Naru-chan."

I nodded before telling him, "Just make sure you watch out for yourself, I've got a very fast healing rate and I would hate for you to get injured trying to heal me."

Rafu blinked before looking at me, "Fast healing rate? What do you mean by that?"

I blushed slightly as I told him the lie that I was getting very used to telling people, "I have a bloodlimit that allows my body to heal faster than the average humans."

Rafu looked interested before turning his attention back to the map, he pointed to the southern entrance, "We're heading in this entrance, it's the least guarded and will give us direct access to the basement where I assume you'll set up the explosives."

I nodded, "Yes sir and I would like to add a couple in some of the upper levels too, possibly the ceiling if at all possible."

Rafu nodded, "It's completely possible as long as we aren't detected. I say we take the day to prepare and we go in by cover of nightfall. Agreed?"

We all agreed with him and we began strategizing for every possible scenario while getting exploding tags together and the dynamite. We were going to blow up a building within hours.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo sat at his kitchen table and slowly drank a cup of coffee; Minato had barged into his room that morning at exactly 4 o'clock and informed Sakumo that they were going to train. It was two hours later and Minato was still banging around upstairs while Sakumo waited patiently with Kakashi in the kitchen. Minato finally came down the stairs with a bright smile on his face; he entered the kitchen and ruffled Kakashi's hair before tossing Sakumo his tanto.

Sakumo caught the weapon in one hand and raised an eyebrow at Minato, "Minato what exactly are we doing today?"

The smile on Minato's face got even brighter as he answered, "Well I think it's time to see how much damage your body took since you haven't trained for a couple of weeks. I want to make sure you're healthy enough to go back on active duty. So we're going all out today, taijutsu, kenjutsu, genjutsu, ninjutsu, anything and everything. I'm thinking a full on battle to test your skills."

A twinkle entered Sakumo's eye as he thought about fighting against Minato, "Sounds like fun, let's go."

Both men were getting up to leave when Kakashi called out, "Umm what about me?"

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

Honestly, I think they forgot I was even in the room and I was not taking that sitting down. Sensei looked at me first, "Well you could find Genma and train with him."

Was he being serious? I wanted to go train with them, it wasn't every day my dad and Sensei sparred against each other and that was something I wouldn't want to miss. I shook my head, "Can't I just go with you two?"

Dad answered this time and I notice the twinkle in his eye increased, I had missed that spark of life that was uniquely my father's. "Well Kakashi, Minato and I are going to get pretty rough and we don't want you to get hurt."

My left eyebrow twitched, he didn't want me to get hurt? I saw Sensei shoot my dad a look out of the corner of my eye, Dad winked at him and soon he too joined in Dad's game, "Yeah 'kashi, you're just too little to train with us. Perhaps in a few years when you hit your growth spurt, if we aren't careful we might step on you."

Dad choked back a laugh, "Plus all we would have to do to defeat you would be to pick you up, not much of a challenge there son."

My eyes flashed at the challenge they were presenting for me, I stood up and slammed both of my hands down on the table, "I'll make both of you eat those words."

Sensei smirked and Dad chuckled, "Fine, but we're not going easy on you Kakashi."

I straightened my back, "I never asked you to."

I turned and headed upstairs to get ready, making sure to grab _Hanshou,_ either I had just signed my own death certificate or I was going to prove something to them today. I may be young and, as much as I hate to admit it, short, but I was a genius shinobi and with my mind and some clever tricks I knew I could catch them off guard.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

The three male shinobi made their way to the training grounds in complete silence. Sakumo was anxious to see how his son had grown since their last spar and Minato was trying his hardest to not tease Kakashi but was failing. "Oh 'kashi! Do you have a plan or are you just hoping we'll go easy on you?"

Kakashi turned around long enough to eye-smile at his Sensei, "That's for me to know and you to find out."

Sakumo grinned at his son's comeback; his mouth would get him in trouble one day. The White Fang looked at the training ground; it was perfect for their training today. It was well hidden from view and had plenty of trees for coverage. Minato turned to him, "Okay since Kakashi insisted on training with us let's do this in three rounds, one on ones then a full on battle if 'kashi's still up for it." He watched as Kakashi sat down by a tree, and nodded for them to continue.

Sakumo and Minato squared off against each other, Sakumo crouching low to the ground almost like a wolf waiting to pounce or a large jungle cat. Minato crouched down too and turned to Kakashi, "Be the referee."

He turned his attention back to Sakumo, noting that the man's mask was firmly in place and his face was void of emotions. A million different scenarios ran through both men's minds as they waited for Kakashi to call the match to start and with a soft voice Kakashi started the training session of a lifetime. "Begin."

Both men stared the other down, taking note of every muscle twitch and every movement of the eyes. Sakumo had learned early that your eyes could give away your intended direction and make you can easy target. Minato's eyes shifted left slightly and Sakumo pounced just as Minato pushed himself to the left, they met in the middle, Sakumo's right jab landing squarely on Minato's arm as he brought his hands up to defend his face. Minato twisted his body and round kicked Sakumo, who jumped back and dodged the oncoming foot. Sakumo propelled himself forward, all the while performing seals, "Katon: Gōkakyu no Jutsu"

Sakumo made a ring with his thumb and index finger before taking a deep breath and spewed a large fireball out of his mouth, under the cover of the flame Sakumo quickly performed another set of seals just as Minato flickered to his right and landed a hard left hook to Sakumo's jaw. Sakumo's body flew back before enveloping in smoke. Minato cursed before scanning the area searching for the real Hatake. He sensed a light flick of chakra to his right and dodged just in time to see Sakumo's foot fly by his head, Minato grabbed the leg and twisted. Sakumo let his leg twist and pivoted his body to kick with his other leg, effectively knocking Minato's grip off his leg. Minato pushed chakra into his feet and propelled himself backwards, performing seals as he watched Sakumo disappear into the trees.

Minato knew he would have to beat Sakumo at his own game, the White Fang was known for his tracking and stealth skills, so the only way he was going to get to Sakumo was to blast him out of the trees, or level the training ground, whichever came first. "Fūton: Daitoppa"

Sakumo narrowly escaped the vortex of wind thrown his way that completely leveled the trees around his position. As Sakumo moved across the trees he reached into his weapons pouch and took out three shuriken, he pushed chakra into his feet and jumped into the clearing he tossed the shuriken at Minato, who blocked them with a kunai. Minato twirled the kunai on his finger before slicing his thumb and quickly running through the hand seals for the summoning jutsu. Sakumo smirked before biting his thumb and summoning his attack dogs. He couldn't wait to see if his ninken liked frog legs. The two ninken were the ones he used a lot during the Second Great Ninja War, the midnight black male ninken with the bandana tied around his neck was Li and the smoky grey male ninken missing an eye was Bran, they were the perfect ones to use for Minato's toads.

Minato smirked at his summons; Gamashin wore two short swords on her back with a red vest that bore the word 'strength', and the male toad Gamakaken, who had a leaf headband around his neck, stood beside him. "Hey guys, I've got a little problem and I need you to go show some puppies who the true boss is."

Gamashin rolled her eyes at Minato, "We'll take care of them Minato, don't worry." Sakumo watched as Lin's eyes widened, he had caught the scent of toad.

Bran and Lin disappeared into the green of the trees as Sakumo jumped to the ground and began walking towards Minato, whose own summons had taken off too. The sound of growls and croaks could be heard from their immediate left as he came closer to Minato and slipped into a taijutsu stance, Minato did the same. Sakumo acted first this time and began a fast combination of punches and kicks to Minato's torso, Minato blocked a majority but the final jab connected with his stomach and knocked the breath out of his lungs. He quickly recovered and swept Sakumo's legs out from under him, the man fell before rolling away from Minato and standing back up, instantly on the defense.

Both men stared at each other, their breaths coming out in short pants as four blurs rocketed into the training ground. Minato quickly stepped out of the line of the fighting summons way and while he was distracted, Sakumo quickly performed the hand seals for the Kage no Bunshin and sent his clone to hide in the trees. Minato flung a kunai at Sakumo that he couldn't dodge, the kunai scraping his arm and leaving behind a weeping wound. Sakumo clutched his arm and ran towards Minato with the intent to punch him, Minato sidestepped Sakumo and elbowed the man in the back, making Sakumo fall forward. Minato gripped Sakumo's hair as he fell to his knees and placed a kunai at the man's neck. Minato was breathing heavily with his first words since the match started, "Your dead."

Sakumo couldn't shake his head or he would slice his own throat, he spoke instead, "No Minato, you're dead."

Minato's eyes widened as he felt the cold blade of a kunai against his neck. Mentally he cursed, "A clone? When did you have time to make a clone?"

He removed the kunai from Sakumo's neck while Sakumo's clone removed his kunai from Minato's neck, "When the summons ran through here." Sakumo whistled and his ninken walked into the clearing, one was sporting a toad in its mouth and the other had a toad riding on its back. Sakumo and Minato laughed before thanking their summons and releasing them.

Kakashi hopped down from the trees, he had taken cover once they had moved back into the clearing, he eye-smiled at both of them, "I say it was a tie."

Kakashi then held out two bento boxes, "I figured you'd both need the energy, you're both not as young as you used to be and I don't want to win because you two couldn't keep up."

Sakumo placed both hands on his hips before thumping Kakashi in the back of the head, "Watch it little boy or you'll be the one eating those words."

Minato took both bento boxes, gave them to Sakumo and in a flash had Kakashi by his feet, hanging upside down. "See what did I tell ya kiddo, we'll win just by picking you up."

Minato poked Kakashi teasingly in the ribs and was rewarded with a muffled fit of laughter from the boy. He mentally stored away the ticklish spot for later use as he sat Kakashi back on the ground and reached into his pouch to toss Sakumo the roll of bandages for his arm.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I yawned and stretched as I woke up from the midday nap Rafu had told us to take; we needed to get as much sleep as we could during the day because tonight we wouldn't get any. We had to get in and get out before we were caught and had to deal with powerful Iwa shinobi. I stood up and made my way out of camp to find somewhere to use the bathroom. I had made it just past the tree line when a hand grabbed my shoulder, instincts kicked in and I immediately reached for my kunai and spun around to face my assailant. I breathed out a sigh of relief, it was just Rafu but he had a slightly worried look on his face, "Naru you didn't sense me?"

I blushed, "Sensei and I are working on that, but no I did not."

He nodded and waved me forward, "Go on and meet me back at camp."

I nodded and went about my business before heading back to camp; the other boys were still asleep. Rafu sat in the middle of camp with his legs crossed and eyes closed. "Naru, come sit with me." I did, but with caution, this man was the one causing my Sensei a lot of pain and he'd been overly mean to me as well.

He must have a reason for being nice to me all of a sudden. "A shinobi that isn't aware of their surroundings won't stay alive very long. You've got to constantly be on surveillance and constantly aware of whom is close to you. A teammate of mine had the same problem you do and my Sensei gave him some pointers that will also help with chakra control."

I wanted to groan at the words chakra control, but instead I nodded and did everything he said. "Let your senses go Naru and get in touch with your surroundings. Can you feel the chakra of your teammates and of me?"

"Yes, it's strong right now. I can even feel lower level chakra."

Rafu hummed in approval, "Good then your problem isn't in sensing chakra's it's somewhere else. I want you to read through the mission scroll and wait for my instructions."

I took the scroll from him, still a little worried about what he could do to me. I began reading and was concentrating on my reading when he grabbed my shoulder again. He sighed, "Well I think your problem is easier than getting honey and corn starch out of hair."

He winked at me and I couldn't help but grin, "You just can't multitask, you've got a one track mind when it comes to chakra sensing."

He reached over into the grass and picked up three rocks and tossed them to me. "Okay I want you to juggle those rocks and continue to sense the chakra around you, but you've got to know where I'm located at all times and not drop a rock."

Sounds easy don't it? Yeah it wasn't. I dropped those blasted rocks twenty five times and every time I dropped a rock Rafu would throw a kunai or a shuriken my way. Eventually it got easier though and about an hour into training I was consciously aware of him the entire time, and I didn't miss a single rock.

"Congratulations Naru, I think we may be on the way of helping you with your problem."

I smiled at him before asking the question that had been on my mind the entire day, "Why are you helping me? I thought you hated me and Sensei?"

Rafu sat down across from me, he looked like he was dealing with a whole lot of guilt and I could only guess what it was. "It's complicated Naru, I'm not a bad person but I truly hate your sensei. I'm not ashamed to admit it, I hate him, but I've come to realize that you aren't Hatake Sakumo. You are my temporary subordinate and it's my job to take care of you, regardless of what you've done to me in the past. I know I deserved every bit of it and more, so don't think I'm not going to have your back because I am."

I nodded and handed him the rocks back, "Thanks."

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo finished eating and popped his back as he stood up; the crack sounded around the training ground and caught Kakashi's attention. _Hanshou_ was strapped snugly against his back, it had taken a couple of days to get used to the katana's weight but both Kakashi and Naru had gotten use to their weapons.

Kakashi was anxious to show his dad what he had learned and how well he could showcase those teachings in a spar. Minato kicked back against a tree and shielded his eyes from the sun, "Get ready Kakashi, you two start in a little bit." Kakashi nodded and stood up, stretching and limbering his muscles up before walking to the middle of the field and facing his Dad.

The tension in the area could be cut with a knife as father and son faced each other, Sakumo cracked his knuckles and drew his tanto before getting into stance. It was the same stance he had taught Kakashi and Naru, feet apart, elbows bent in close to the body, and sword aimed toward your opponent's throat.

Kakashi took the same stance and waited for the match to begin, he wasn't feeling as confident as he was before. The look in his father's eyes promised that he was going to treat this as an actual match; he wasn't going to hold back or go easy on Kakashi. This was everything Kakashi had ever wanted. Minato yelled from his spot by the tree's base, "Begin"

Neither opponent moved and Minato found himself watching his student, he knew Kakashi wasn't going to be able to beat Sakumo, but he expected his student to put on a good show.

Kakashi's mind was devoid of all thought as his father's voice filled his inner mind, silently coaching him, _"Relax; don't tense up. It'll affect your speed if you do."_ Kakashi let out a deep breath and relaxed the muscles in his body as he watched his father's every movement. Sakumo decided to make the first movement and Kakashi's eyes widened as his father was in front of him one second and behind him the next, his mind screamed at him in his shock and he quickly blocked the swipe toward his torso.

Sakumo wasn't playing and Kakashi suddenly felt very small, their blades were still connected and white chakra flamed off of both blades. Sakumo pushed back and Kakashi felt his feet sliding in the dirt, he knew he had to react or he would fall and everything would be over. Kakashi pushed chakra into his arms and with _Hanshou_ , lifted his father's blade enough to pivot his body and get out of strike range. Sakumo followed behind him and blocked as Kakashi thrust towards him, Sakumo's voice was ringing in Kakashi's mind, _"Don't charge recklessly Kakashi, stay on defense when against someone better than you."_

Sakumo's tanto sliced downwards and Kakashi instantly blocked with _Hanshou_ , before sidestepping the assault.

Sakumo did a downward strike and again Kakashi blocked, but Kakashi knew he wasn't going to last much longer at the rate they were going; it was time to add Taijutsu and Ninjutsu into the mix. Kakashi channeled chakra into his feet and propelled himself backwards, making sure to catch his balance as he landed, he then raced forward but suddenly he stopped a few feet in front of Sakumo and swiped the chakra infused blade toward his father.

The blade pulsed before sending out a wave of white chakra toward Sakumo, who slashed across the wave of chakra to break it up. Kakashi took the opportunity to sheath his katana and quickly flew through hand seals, he Shunshined behind his father, redrew _Hanshou_ and struck at his father from behind. Sakumo saw Kakashi out of the corner of his eye and twisted his body to have the blade cut off a few strands of wayward silver hair instead of his skin. Kakashi stepped back from his father's twisting body before dodging another swipe from Sakumo's tanto. Sakumo quickly turned around before performing the Konoha Ryū: Mikazuki no Mai.

Three clones appeared and raced towards Kakashi with blades drawn, Kakashi's eyes widened as he saw the three figures move closer while performing the Dance of the Crescent Moon. He couldn't determine which was his dad and which was the clones, Kakashi knew he had to act fast and he needed something to outsmart his dad long enough to get at least one hit in. His mind went through a million scenarios before it landed on one that would play on his father's weaknesses and give him the time he needed to react. Kakashi quickly went through the hand seals for the genjutsu before moving out of the way and watching the genjutsu run its course from a safe position in the trees. The genjutsu was similar to the one the interrogators had used on Naru, except it was a lot easier to break and not as lasting to the person it was used on. Kakashi just hoped his genjutsu didn't trigger any bad memories for his father.

Sakumo watched as Kakashi made no motion to move away from the attack and to his horror he watched in slow motion as his tanto entered Kakashi's body through his chest. Sakumo was in shock and would have dropped his tanto if it wasn't lodged in Kakashi's body. Sakumo didn't know whether to scream or cry, but his nose and senses were going off inside his mind, almost like a genjutsu.

Sakumo blinked before dispelling the image before him, only to feel a searing pain down his arm. He turned to his right and saw the blood running down his arm; Kakashi had used a genjutsu to distract him and then went in for the kill. He had done better than Sakumo had ever hoped he would do. Sakumo decided that it was time to end this match, Kakashi was breathing heavily and looked exhausted but he had done great.

Kakashi was standing close enough for Sakumo to easily end the match. Sakumo used his legs to kick Kakashi's feet out from under him. Kakashi felt his legs give and he fell to his knees, Sakumo pointed his tanto underneath Kakashi's chin, straight at his throat. Kakashi lowered his eyes, he had lost, badly. Sakumo sheathed his tanto and knelt in front of his only son, gently lifting Kakashi's chin so he was looking into his father's eyes, "You did good Ka-chan, a whole lot better than anyone else would have done and you should be proud of yourself. I know I am."

Kakashi eye-smiled at his Dad as he sheathed his tanto and held a hand out to help him up, Minato whistled from the sidelines. "That was pretty good; let's see how you'll fair against two of us."

Sakumo smirked behind his mask, but instead of getting into a taijutsu stance, he turned his head and watched the road. A figure appeared on the road wearing an ANBU uniform. "Hatake-san, the Hokage requests your presence at the Hokage Tower to get your reactivation papers done."

Sakumo nodded towards the ANBU, "I'll be there shortly."

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

Dad was actually getting to go back on active duty; I was excited to say the least. Yeah I had lost my match against him, but my loss was overshadowed in my mind by this milestone. I would just have to work harder to beat him next time. The ANBU turned towards Sensei, "The Hokage also requests that Namikaze-san and Kakashi-kun accompany you to the Tower as well."

I frowned at the ANBU, why would we need to accompany him to the Tower? Sensei sighed, "Well I guess we'll have to finish this another time."

We picked up the empty bento boxes and headed towards the Hokage Tower, I trashed the boxes halfway between the Tower and the training ground, and as I was trying to catch up to my dad and Sensei a clump of dirt landed beside me. I stopped and turned around quickly, and found nothing but civilians and the occasional shinobi heading about their business. "Come on Kakashi."

I turned back to Dad; I had a bad feeling welling up in my chest.

All three of us stood before the Hokage, we looked dirty from training and dad's uniform was spotted with blood. I felt a tiny amount of pride at the knowledge that I had landed a hit on him, though he technically did win. "Well it looks like you three have been busy this morning."

Dad smiled at the Hokage, "Yes sir, just getting a little training done."

The Hokage nodded before handing Dad a packet of papers, "I hate to do this to you Sakumo, but you've got to fill out this paperwork so we can put you back on active duty. When you're through just give it to the missions desk, it shouldn't take you long but I want it done by tomorrow."

Dad nodded and began looking through the papers. The Hokage turned to Sensei and me, "Well this next packet of papers involves all three of you, plus Naru when she gets back. Before you can be deployed we have to take care of some minor details."

I blinked at the Hokage, what minor details was he talking about? The sinking feeling in my chest tightened, usually that only happened when I have to go to the hospital. Well I guess it's not going into the hospital I hate; it's being a patient in the hospital. I could really do without the smell of death and antiseptic. The Hokage spoke again, "You three need to go have your physicals updated and I've scheduled them for today."

I blinked in shock, that wasn't happening. Dad must have sensed my flight vibes because he placed a hand on my shoulder as did Minato-sensei; they knew me well enough to know I would never voluntarily go to the hospital. The only time I had ever gone without complaint was when I was attacked by the Chunin, Dad had been so far gone that I didn't want to do anything to set him off.

"That's all I had for you, dismissed."

Dad and I walked out, but Minato-sensei stayed behind, he waved me forward and told me he'd catch up.

Dad handed me the papers for our physicals and we were heading outside when a blur ran past us. Dad blinked before calling out, "Ronin? Where's the fire?"

Ronin skidded to a stop before racing back up the hallway and latching onto Dad's arm. "Sakumo, you've got to help me. I think I'm going to lose my mind. I can't do this."

I noticed my father's friend was extremely pale, shaking, and looked scared out of his mind. I couldn't help but wonder what causeed a man that killed people for a living to be so terrified. Dad just smiled, "What's the problem Ronin?"

The terrified man in front of his took a shaky breath before speaking, "My wife went into labor this morning while I was on a mission. The messenger said the baby could come at any moment and I don't think I'm ready yet."

Dad laughed, "I think it's a little too late for that Ronin."

The blonde man nodded before smiling weakly, "I guess I'm just being silly. I must really look pathetic right now."

Dad shook his head, "Not at all, you'd look pathetic if you curled up into the fetal position and cried, right now you just look terrified."

Ronin rolled his eyes at dad before letting go of his arm, "I hate to ask, but will you come wait with me?"

Dad nodded and instantly agreed, "We've got to head to the hospital anyway, and what kind of friend would I be if I didn't help you in your time of need." Ronin thanked Dad one more time before walking with us to the hospital.

Once we got to the hospital we took the stairs to the second floor and sat outside a pair of double doors. Dad began working on his papers and would every once in a while tell Ronin to stop pacing and sit down before he made himself sick. I just listened to the sound of Ronin's pacing feet and the faint screams of what sounded like someone in a lot of pain.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

The Hokage looked closely at Minato, "Is there something you needed Minato?"

The blonde haired man nodded, "Are you aware of the attacks that have succeeded against Kakashi, Naru and Sakumo since his failed mission was made public?"

Sarutobi looked years older as he nodded, "I've had punishments ready since I found out about them, but I've been so busy that I couldn't step in and give them out. I also wanted to give someone time to come to me over the violence; I can't help anyone unless they want to be helped. I don't agree with this type of treatment, especially not to children. These crimes should not have been committed by ninja of the Leaf, especially not on other ninja of the Leaf."

Minato nodded in agreement with the Hokage. "I read the medical ninja's report on Kakashi's injuries, they beat him hard Minato and I'm very surprised they didn't break any of his bones. Naru's broken nose was unacceptable as well. I've spoken to several eye witnesses and even some ANBU who were patrolling the area caught both incidents, so we don't have to worry about evidence."

Minato nodded, "I have a couple of ideas if you want to hear them."

The Hokage smiled, "I'll tell you mine first then I'll let you have your own punishment. Since one is your daughter and the other is your student."

The Hokage reached into the drawers of his desk and took out a folder, he began reading, "In the case of the attack on Hatake Kakashi, all four Chunin, Eto Ibuki, Yamamoto Morita, Rato Kazuki, and Haru Takumi, will be apprehended and demoted to the rank of Genin. They obviously do not show the qualities of a Chunin of the Leaf and thus will no longer be allowed to wear the rank. I've added up their entire list of offenses to include, impersonation of official messengers, assaulting a minor, kidnapping, and unlawful restraint. This could land them in prison because these are serious offenses and not Konoha Leaf ninja actions. I'm ashamed to say the least."

Minato nodded before smiling evilly, "Send them to Shima for a session."

Sarutobi smirked, before writing the suggestion down on paper, "I'm sure Shima would love to get his hands on them. He's got a little boy at home and I know I would want retribution if someone did this to Asuma."

The Hokage set that folder down and picked up another one, "This is the case of the attack on Uzu Naru, Hatake Kakashi, Namiashi Raido, and Shiranui Genma by Genin Mori Etsu, Tomoko Suzume, Yamashiro Aoba, and Hyuga Aimi. Once again I have evidence from several eye witnesses and according to the reports Etsu started the fight by provoking Kakashi and then everything turned into a free for all. Normally I would say the Chunin would be at fault here, but the Genin came into the clearing with intent to start a fight and with a cheap shot broke Naru's nose. Also, they were slandering a fellow ninja's name and the name of his deceased wife, the Genin are obviously at fault here. I'm not allowing them to test for Chunin for exactly one year, they need to learn what a true Chunin is because they are obviously not ready for that responsibility; I'm also putting them back in the Academy for respect classes as well as writing them up for insubordination. They will also visit the shinobi jail so they can see what happens to those who break Konoha law and I think in person apologies to Naru and Kakashi are expected from the group."

Minato nodded before giving his suggestions, "I would say divide and conquer for these four, punish them separately or they'll just slack off. Aimi is a Hyuga; let her clan deal with her punishment because they'll get her worse than anything you can do. I want to personally take care of Etsu's punishment; no questions asked Hokage-sama. I would also suggest making Aoba and Suzume do something along the lines of helping clean out the Inuzuka dog pens without pay for a couple of weeks. I also think being on kitchen duty for the Akimichi would be another possible punishment."

The Hokage nodded before writing down each suggestion, "I'm calling all of them into my office later to give them their punishment summons, Fugaku will be here to take them to the jail and Etsu will report to you tomorrow morning for her punishment. Just remember to not kill or maim her in any way." Minato turned and flashed the Hokage a smile. The Hokage shuffled through the papers on his desk before stopping Minato again, "Minato, do you remember taking an escort mission a couple of months back? You and Kakashi escorted a pregnant woman by the name of Kato Ami to the market."

Minato nodded, "Yeah she looked like she was about to pop last time I saw her."

The Third smiled, "Well she popped late last night, my eldest son was the one that found her in labor and was the one that took her to the hospital. I don't want her to sink into postpartum depression, so could you and Kakashi visit her today? She's alone here."

Minato smiled, "Yeah no problem and besides babies are adorable." The Hokage thanked Minato again as he left the office and headed towards the hospital.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

The sound of clicking heels caught my attention as I sat and helped Dad fill out the numerous papers. He had just gotten up and taken Ronin outside to calm him down when I looked up and saw the lady from the medical jutsu storage room walking towards me reading a medical chart; Tohru was her name if I remembered correctly. She stopped when she saw me, smiled and flipped her chart closed. "Well if it isn't my friend from the medical jutsu room."

I eye-smiled at her, "Tohru-san still harassing people sitting on benches I see."

I had to get her back for tricking me. She tapped a finger against the chart in her hand and looked like she was up to something. "Well I saw such an adorable and cute little boy sitting there all by himself and I just couldn't help myself."

She made like she was going to pinch my cheeks but I glared harshly at her. Her ringing laughter bounced off the walls of the hallway, "I'm just teasing."

I went to speak to her again when a very loud and angry voice echoed down the hall.

"Tohru! Woman where are you?"

She sighed before turning in the direction of the voice, "I'm busy. I'll be there in a minute."

She turned back to me as the voice thundered down the hall again, "No now!"

She handed me the chart, "I'll be right back Kakashi-kun." She walked away and I blinked, how did she know my name?

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Ryozo tapped his foot impatiently against the floor, waiting for his girlfriend to come to him. To say he was mad was an understatement, Ryozo was ticked off. Tohru came into view and after making sure no one was in the hallway, he gripped her arm and harshly pulled her into an empty room. "Where the hell were you last night? I waited up for you."

Tohru wretched her arm away and straightened her clothes, "Last time I checked you were not my keeper and I actually had to pull a double shift last night."

Ryozo clenched his fist together, "Then why didn't you call or come by? I had better things to do besides waiting for you."

Tohru's temper flared, "It's not like we were going to do anything special, all you wanted was someone to cook supper for you and someone to have a romp with."

Ryozo growled at her, "Oh I'm sorry but I've actually got a real job. I am a ninja you know."

Tohru released a small amount of killing intent, "You'll do well to remember that I too was once a ninja and the only reason I'm still not is because my skills are better suited here."

Ryozo smirked before rolling his eyes, "Yeah right. I've got a mission so we'll deal with this when I return."

He turned and walked out of the room. Tohru waited until he had left before grabbing a pillow from the unoccupied bed and screaming her frustration into it.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

Dad and Ronin returned five minutes later, Ronin was looking calmer but still jumping at every sound. Dad just looked highly amused at everything. He tapped the medical chart in my hand, "What's this Kakashi?"

" A medical chart. I'm just holding it for someone."

He nodded, "Who?"

I was going to tell him when Tohru came walking back down the hall, I heard Dad whistle underneath his breath as I pointed to her. He also mumbled a comment that I'm sure I wasn't supposed to hear, but agreed with him all the same. She did have amazing legs, but she looked so upset that I knew something was wrong. She took the chart from me, "Thanks Kakashi-kun."

I grabbed her hand, "Are you alright Tohru?"

She sadly smiled before nodding, "Yeah just some personal problems. I'll be fine. So did the jutsu work?"

I rolled by eyes at her playfully, "Still being nosy I see."

Dad hissed my name for my rudeness, "Kakashi"

Tohru shook her head and laughed again, "No, I deserved that. He didn't mean anything by it."

Dad gave me a look, "He may not have meant anything by it, but it was still rude."

Tohru smiled at Dad and I saw a teasing twinkle in her eye, "You must be Kakashi's father."

Dad nodded, "Hatake Sakumo."

She brought her hand up to run through her hair, "I've heard that name before, didn't you do something important?"

Dad blinked, not believing Tohru didn't know of him. "I'm the White Fang of Konoha."

Tohru winked at me before turning back to Dad, "Oh really? Never heard of you."

Ronin broke out in laughter and I joined him, "I'm sorry Sakumo-san I couldn't resist. I knew Kakashi from a chance encounter and from gossiping nurses, after I met him the other day here and I had to find out who he was. That silver hair gives you away every time Kakashi-kun."

She winked in my direction as the double doors opened and a medical ninja came out, "Soto Ronin?"

Ronin raised a hand, "Yeah."

The male medical ninja smiled, "Come see your wife and son."

Ronin blinked before rushing into the room. Tohru tapped the chart again, "Well I've got to go but I need to borrow Kakashi for a moment."

Dad waved me forward and I left with Tohru, "Yeah?"

She bent down to my level, "Did the jutsu work?"

I nodded, "Yeah it worked just fine."

"I really need to check the person over Kakashi-kun so I know there wasn't anything that the jutsu didn't get."

I shook my head, knowing that if she found out, the Council could find out, "No the jutsu worked and that's all that matters."

I turned to go back to my Dad, but she grabbed my arm, "Kakashi please, I need to check your dad over."

I froze before choosing my next words very carefully, "What makes you think it was my dad that needed the jutsu?"

She sighed, "Because this person obviously meant a lot to you and just by watching you two interact I know he's very precious to you. I just want to make sure he's okay Kakashi and I know about the mess that's been going around. I swear on my honor that I won't tell anybody the results, I just want to help you."

I weighed the pros and cons before agreeing, "Okay we'll be home tonight and you can come see about him."

She ruffled my hair, "Take care Kakashi."

I walked back to my dad and smiled when I noticed Minato-sensei sitting beside him. "Hey 'kashi, come with me I've got someone who wants to meet you."

I blinked in confusion before walking with Minato-sensei to a room a few steps down the hall, when he opened the door a familiar young dark skinned woman sat on the bed holding a baby. She smiled at me, "It's good to see you again Kakashi-kun."

I instantly remembered her as the pregnant woman that we had escorted to the market, "Ami-san."

Minato-sensei pushed me forward before reaching for the child and cooing at him. "He's very handsome Ami-san, looks a lot like you."

She smiled sweetly, "Thank you Minato-san. I thought I would be alone today but you've proved me wrong."

I stood on my tip toes to look at the dark skinned baby with light brown hair, he looked really soft. Sensei brought him down to my level, "Do you want to hold him 'kashi?"

I shook my head and Ami giggled, "His name is Mozuku and you won't hurt him if you hold him Kakashi-kun."

Minato-sensei didn't give me time to answer because before I knew it, I had been pushed into a chair and the baby was being placed in my arms. Instincts made my arms go rigid as I held the little wiggling bundle that blinked up at me. Sensei gushed over the little thing and I still couldn't see what the huge fuss was about over the baby. Eventually the baby began crying and Sensei took it out of my arms before giving it back to his mother, "He's just hungry. Thanks again for stopping by you two."

We walked out of the room just in time to see Ronin hand off another wiggling bundle to Dad. He sat back down and I heard Ronin ask, "I've got to go back and check on my wife, are you fine with him?"

Dad waved him off, "Yeah I've got it. It's been such a long time since I've held a baby this little."

He swayed the tiny baby in his arms and pushed the covers back from the little face of the newest person to our Village. Minato-sensei walked over and looked at the child, "This Ronin's baby?"

Dad nodded, "Yeah they've got the same nose, but he's definitely got his mother's hair color."

I had gotten onto the bench and was looking over Dad's shoulder at the second baby I had been in contact with in less than ten minutes and still couldn't figure out why everyone was making such a big deal over the cuteness of the child. He'd grow up to regret his cuteness later. Dad turned to me, "Want to hold him?"

I shook my head and crossed my arms; I had had enough holding babies for one day. Sensei smiled, "He held Aimi-san's baby just a few minutes ago. I think 'kashi's had enough babies for one day, though he did look adorable holding someone smaller than him."

I glared at Sensei, he laughed it off before walking down the hall, "I'm going to get this physical over with; I'll meet you guys back at the house."

Dad turned to me and shifted the baby in his arms, "You know this reminds me of your birth."

Dad got this faraway look in his eye as he turned back to the baby and let himself be taken down memory lane. "Your mother was so excited when she found out she was pregnant, you were all she ever wanted. She waited anxiously all nine months for your birth and would watch her waist grow every month with this look of love in her eyes. You surprised us in the middle of the night and three weeks early, we almost didn't make it to the hospital in time."

He stopped and let out a small laugh, "She was the first one to hold you and I'll never forget what she said. She held you just like this."

He moved the baby in his arms to where the baby was facing him and held snuggly in both hands in front of his body. "She looked at you and shook her head before saying, you poor baby, you look exactly like your father."

I smiled at him as he moved the baby back into the crook of his arm. "Who named me?"

"Well I can't say for sure, it was more of a joint effort. She wanted something different and I wanted something that would flow well together."

I raised an eyebrow at him, "So Farmland Scarecrow was the best you could come up with?"

He laughed before swatting me with his free arm, "Well you can honestly say no one else has your name."

Ronin eventually came back for his son, "Well she decided on a name, Soto Shibire." I decided that I liked that name, just as much as I liked my own.

Eventually dad had to drag me to get our physicals done and since we did spend a majority of the day at the hospital, he had completely finished his paperwork. I had to get him home in time for Tohru to come over. I just hoped he wasn't mad that I had outside help.

* * *

We met Tohru as we walked towards our house, it was almost 5 o'clock but we still had enough light to get home by. She smiled at both of us; Dad looked between the two of us before giving me a confused look. "She's promised to not say anything and I know we can trust her."

He nodded and all three of us walked to the house where Sensei was cooking supper. "Hey I'm cooking. Oh, you've brought home company."

Tohru smiled, "I'm not staying very long; I'm just going to check over Sakumo-san."

Dad looked at her, "You promise not to say anything?"

She nodded her head, "No one will ever know about this. I just want to make sure the jutsu was effective."

Dad nodded, "Where do you want to do this at?"

"Umm the couch is fine, you'll need to take off your shirt and lay down." He did as she said; I couldn't help but notice a small blush grace her face as she began moving the healing green chakra down his torso.

"You had minor damage to your stomach, but your liver is clean. I've healed the esophagus wounds from the obvious signs of dry heaving and I'm healed the damage to your stomach. Everything else was taken care of beautifully."

Dad began pulling his shirt back on and thanked her. "Are you sure you don't want to stay for supper?"

She shook her head, "No I've got plans tonight, but thank you for the offer."

She turned to me, "Want me to take that scroll back to the hospital?"

I nodded and headed upstairs to retrieve the scroll, she smiled as I handed it to her before leaning over and kissing my cheek, "You're a sweet boy Kakashi. Make sure you take care of your dad." Tohru waved before telling Sensei and Dad goodbye and walking out the door.

Dad grinned at me as I fought the blush down, Sensei though didn't stop his teasing, "Awww 'Kashi-chan likes older women."

I glared hotly at him, "Your chicken is burning Sensei." He blinked before running into the kitchen. Yeah mess with me again Sensei.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Naru stood on top of the hill and looked over at the warehouse; it was relatively dark with only a few lit windows on the bottom two floors. Kenji was standing beside her checking through his medical bag, "Naru, I'm ready when you are."

Rafu, Raido, and Tenshi appeared beside the other two shinobi and nodded, they had been in charge of surveying the area while Naru and Kenji played look out. Rafu looked at the group, "Let's move out."

The group blended well with the trees as they made their way down the hill and close to the warehouse, Naru noticed that there was not a single guard patrolling on the outside of the warehouse. This was an obvious sign that there would be more inside the building. Naru got to the door first; she jiggled the doorknob before performing the seal for Kage No Bunshin and henging her clone into another small bug.

The bug clone disappeared underneath the crack and when a soft click was heard all five shinobi entered the basement of the warehouse. Rafu signaled to Tenshi and without a word Tenshi opened a scroll and produced a bow before walking ahead of the group. According to the plans there was an elevator shaft on the first floor that went all the way to the attic, which would give Tenshi the proper coverage to be air assault. Rafu found the old shaft and lifted the rusty door; it had been used at one time to deliver laundry from the upper floors to the bottom. Tenshi saluted Rafu and us before sitting in the shaft and walking up the wall with his chakra.

Naru began sticking exploding tags in the four corners of the basement, there were a lot of supplies in the basement, but it was mostly weapons. Multiple crates of kunai and shuriken, plus several raw metal crates. The very important stuff like records of supply lines, medical supplies, and poisons were going to be on the upper floor levels. The attic actually held the most important stuff and was sure to be the most heavily guarded, which was why Naru sent several shock bombs with Tenshi. Once the shock bombs were activated anyone exposed to the bomb would be blind for exactly thirty seconds, long enough to do major damage.

Naru made sure to add several sticks of dynamite around the boxes just in case there were other things lurking in the boxes. All of Naru's dynamite and exploding tags could be activated by her chakra or the charka of her teammates, in the event that something happened to her. Raido and Rafu found the stairs and began their ascent up the wooden stairs. Kenji stayed close by Naru's side, his kunai drawn.

Raido and Rafu saw two guards standing at the entrance of the hallway and with concealed chakra moved behind the guards and slit their throats. The bodies fell to the ground, Rafu looked at them before sighing; the guards were not ninjas. Iwa was hiring mercenaries to guard the warehouse but the feel of trained chakra told Rafu that there were ninjas there too. Rafu and Raido paved the way for Naru and Kenji as they made their down the hallway.

The hallway led into another large room, it was empty besides the forms of two sleeping shinobi by the wall, Raido got both of them with kunai's to the heart. Naru hurried around and saw the titles on the crates; they had explosives in the crates. She backed away before signaling to Rafu, his eyes widened before nodding her to go ahead and place the tags. Naru placed the tags on the crates, stepped over the dead bodies and began placing tags around the room. She stopped after realizing they had been in the warehouse for thirty minutes and weren't getting anything accomplished.

She signaled to Rafu, "I'm going to the top floor and I'll meet you in the middle." Rafu nodded and Naru took off with Kenji.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I silently made my way up the stairs to the next floor, the blueprints showed all three floors, plus the attic and basement. Each floor had a large room in the middle and several rooms off the side of the large rooms. The first floor was the exception; it was the only floor besides the basement that just had one large room. I sighed before trying to sense out chakra, there were at least five chakra signals on the second floor; two were either being concealed or were the chakra signals of small children. I shook that thought off; there was no way a child would be in an Iwa warehouse.

I entered the large room and saw several shinobi standing alongside the wall, my eyes widened and I backtracked into the stairs to head to the next floor. There weren't any chakra signals on the third floor and neither were there any supplies. Kenji and I began checking the rooms, only to find them empty and bare. I sighed before strategically placing dynamite and exploding tags around the room, even if the second floor wasn't tagged the third floor and attic would cave in on the bottom floors. We were heading up the stairs when a voice came from behind us, "Well look what the cat dragged in and to think we had a skeleton crew tonight because we didn't think anybody would show up. I guess we were wrong and look at the pretty little girl, sweetie couldn't hurt a fly I bet."

I snarled at him before taking out a kunai. He laughed, "You can't hit me with that."

"No but I can." The man's eyes widened as Rafu thrust his kunai through the man's neck. He fell to the ground in a heap and blood began pooling around him. "Get upstairs Naru, Tenshi's taken care of the shinobi in the attic so watch the rotten wood and bodies."

I nodded and headed upstairs; Tenshi appeared in the doorway and nodded to us. I instantly began putting out the rest of the exploding tags and dynamite, everything had to be placed along the supports or the building wouldn't tumble.

I knew if I could attack the skeletal system of the building then I would have the entire thing down in minutes. Once the final explosives were put out, we quietly headed downstairs. There were still five people on the second floor and we needed to get out before they discovered us. I could already hear a female voice calling out to one of the dead.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Rafu watched as Naru gathered her chakra and expelled it from outside, the building glowed an eerie orange before imploding in on itself. The falling debris and balls of fire fell around the area; the blast could have been seen for miles. The smell of explosives was heavy in the air and Rafu knew they had only moments before Iwa ninjas swarmed the place, but he couldn't make himself leave his spot.

Naru didn't know it; only he and Raido knew it, but the five chakras Naru had felt in the building was not mercenaries or ninjas. They were the chakras of two small children, their mother and two more females. Rafu knew they were the family of either the owners of the warehouse or of some of the Iwa guards.

The death of innocence was horrible especially when it involved children and Rafu refused to let Naru know about who was in the building.

It would kill her. "Let's move out, mission accomplished."

* * *

Twenty minutes later Iwa shinobi swarmed the place, one man fell to his knees as he saw the destruction, a year of storing had just gone up in flames. His eyes widened as he remembered that his wife and two little girls had been in the building waiting for him. He jumped to his feet and ran to a superior officer, "Please tell me there were survivors."

The captain shook his head, "I'm sorry, no survivors."

The unknown Iwa shinobi's face twisted into grief before slipping into anger. "Do we know who did this?"

The captain nodded, "All we know is Leaf Shinobi, but rest assured, we'll get those responsible."

"Captain, captain, we've found a trail!"

The captain looked at the yelling shinobi before turning back to the grieving husband and father. "Yuuma, go with the party and see what they find." Yuuma nodded and headed off after the group, pushing chakra into his feet because they had ground to make up. Yuuma was determined to get payback for the deaths of his family.

* * *

Tenshi cried out as he landed on his foot wrong, they were at least an hour away from the warehouse and had been running nonstop. Tenshi had stumbled over a rock and twisted his foot as he tried to catch himself. Rafu stopped before turning around, he figured they were far enough away that they could take a break, plus Kenji needed time to wrap Tenshi's foot. Raido was still quiet; he had taken the idea of killing the children kind of hard.

Naru sat on the ground and sighed; she scanned the area for any foreign chakra but didn't feel anything but the chakra from the animals in the area.

* * *

Yuuma couldn't believe their luck, the Konoha shinobi had stopped because of injury; they waited until the girl finished scanning before carefully watching the group from the trees. He was going to get payback for the innocents in the warehouse.

* * *

Rafu looked closely at Naru, "You know this really isn't the time or place, but Naru you look an awfully lot like Minato. You could almost pass as his daughter."

Naru's eyes widened before she laughed it off, "I don't know what you're talking about." Naru looked around worriedly, something felt off to her.

* * *

Yuuma's eyes widened as he took a close look at the girl. He agreed with the Jounin, she looked an awful lot like the up and coming terror that was Namikaze Minato. He had not only been the student of the Toad Sage, but he was also a very powerful Jounin. The bingo book listed him under do not engage.

The thought of possessing a child that could be Minato's was exciting to Yuuma. Iwa would have an upper hand over the shinobi and could bargain with Konoha and even if she ended up not being his child then there was no telling what information she held. Yuuma made up his mind at that exact moment, he was going to capture the little blonde girl and interrogate her. He signaled to the group behind him, he wasn't really in charge, but that didn't matter to him.

He needed retribution.

* * *

Rafu felt the chakra before he ever saw the jutsu, he yelled to the Chunin and instantly went on the defense. Naru had been hit in the shoulder with two kunai, her eyes changed from clear blue to blood red as an Iwa shinobi landed in the clearing. Another shinobi landed behind Rafu and began fighting him. Rafu dodged and punched his way towards the unknown shinobi before he tripped over the outstretched leg of one of the Iwa ninjas that Tenshi had taken out from his spot leaning against a tree.

Kenji had been hit with a Katon jutsu and was writhing on the floor clutching his burnt arm. Tenshi had been knocked out from behind after knocking off one of the Iwa ninjas. Raido was laying face down in the dirt, and from Rafu's position, he couldn't tell if Raido was breathing. The shinobi walked up to Rafu and smirked before plunging a katana into his right shoulder, Rafu let out a scream.

Red chakra leaked out of Naru and Yuuma smirked, the girl was going to be more of a treasure than he originally thought. He began doing very complicated hand seals before distracting Naru with a kunai and jumping behind her. He slammed his hand into the back of her head, the seal temporarily cutting off the red chakra flow through her body and sealing it into her stomach.

The seal would also drain her chakra as time went on, but Yuuma didn't plan to keep her alive long enough to have to worry about chakra drainage. The force of the hit made Naru stagger forward, but Yuuma caught her and hoisted her onto his back. "We've got what we want. Let's go."

Rafu watched helplessly as the Iwa shinobi took an unconscious Naru away from the clearing, he pulled his aching body up and began checking on his students. They had to get to Konoha, they had to save Naru. Rafu looked towards the direction of Konoha, and felt his hear sink, they still had two days travel before they could inform the village of Naru's kidnapping.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I woke up with a splitting headache and a slight buzz in my ear. I felt like I had been hit by a very large and running animal. I tried to move my arms but they were being held down by something. I tried to remember what the last thing I had done was.

I remembered the demolition and I remembered Tenshi getting injured. My eyes snapped opened and I was met with a dark room and the sound of dripping water. My heart pounded against my chest and tears prickled at my eyes as I realized what happened. I had been captured.

I whimpered against the gag in my mouth as the door clanked open. A tall man walked into the cell, "Such a pretty little girl." He walked over and twirled my hair, "Such pretty blonde hair and pretty blue eyes."

He stroked my face before letting his hands travel down my body, I thought he would stop but he didn't. His hands stopped right before my pants and began unbuttoning them, my eyes widened and I tried to call on any chakra in my body but I couldn't feel any. I couldn't get away and I couldn't fight back. I closed my eyes and screamed against the gag.

The door clanked open again and I heard an angry voice, "What the hell are you doing? Get away from her you sick freak!"

The sound of flesh hitting flesh sounded throughout the room and I opened my eyes to see another man standing in the room. "Yuuma I know you're upset but she's seven years old at the most, we don't rape children. What if she was your daughter?"

The man on the floor grunted in frustration before storming out of the room, the other man walked over to me and buttoned my pants back up. He whispered in my ear, "I'll make you miserable and I'll make you crack but I won't allow anyone to take advantage of you. Enemy or not, you're still a little girl."

He walked out of the room and I screamed in frustration, I wanted to go home.

I wanted my daddy.


	22. Chapter 19

**Chapter 19**

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

The screams and sobs of the other prisoners greeted me after both men left me lying on the cold and unfeeling surface of a metal table. The torturous sounds around me formed together into a terrible lullaby that left me fighting against sleep. I didn't know where I was and I didn't know how long I had been there, all I knew was that I was in deep trouble. I knew if I went to sleep that my nightmares would take me back to a place I only visited on the darkest nights, my capture by Akatsuki. I had come to realize that the memories I wanted to forget the most were the ones that would linger the longest.

Mental exhaustion eventually won over and I unwillingly closed my eyes and drifted into a sleep laced with nightmares and memories. A splash of red, the smell of ramen, a child's scream, and a hoarse whisper in my ear kept me company in the darkness.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Rafu began getting his students ready for the run back to Konoha; his movements were fast and jerky as he tried to tie a bandage around the burn on Kenji's arm. Kenji opened his medical pack and found the pain medication before taking a few pills. He stood uneasily and went to check on Raido while Rafu went to Tenshi. Raido was fine except for a few places where he had been hit by kunai but Kenji took care of those wounds. Kenji gritted his teeth against the pain in his arm as he placed the last bandage on Raido's side and began trying to wake his teammate up.

Raido groaned as he came to and grabbed the back of his head where he had been knocked out. "Is everyone alright?"

Kenji shook his head, "Raido we were all injured and the Iwa ninjas took Naru."

Raido blinked before jumping to his feet and swaying slightly. He regained his balance before looking wildly around the area, "No, no, no. We've got to go after her and get her back. Iwa will eat her alive."

Rafu stood up beside the now conscious Tenshi and spoke with sadness in his voice, "Raido we can't go after her, not in our current condition. We're doing good to just stand; we wouldn't last three minutes against her captors. We'll return to Konoha and send a team back."

Raido knew his Sensei was right, but it hurt. Naru was his friend and to leave her behind was killing him. He nodded his head and helped Tenshi stand on unsure and injured legs; he slung his teammate's arm over his shoulder and looked at his Sensei, "Let's get to Konoha then."

Rafu nodded and the four of them took off, moving as fast as they could with their injuries.

* * *

The Hokage looked at the four young Genin and the two Jounin-Senseis in front of him. It was the morning of their punishment and he took secret joy in the fact that the offending Genin had no idea why they were called into his office. The two Senseis knew all about their student's unsavory behavior but had held their tongues at the Hokage's request, though from the looks on their faces, the Hokage could tell they were not pleased with their student's actions. "I called you in today because of an incident that happened a few weeks ago. Does anyone have any idea what I'm talking about?"

Etsu raised an eyebrow in question and Aoba looked at the ground before timidly raising his hand, "I think I know Hokage-sama."

Suzume shot Aoba a look before looking towards Etsu. Etsu had paled considerably and her hands were shaking slightly. Aimi's pure white eyes widened before her own gaze dropped to the floor. "Aoba, please continue."

Aoba cleared his throat before speaking, "We got into a fight with Naru, Kakashi, Raido, and Genma after provoking them."

The Hokage nodded before standing up and walking in front of the trembling Genin, they had all realized what the meeting was for. "Provoking them isn't the right word for what you did, I believe you four said and did some things that were downright cruel, not to mention very unworthy of a ninja of Konoha." All four Genin looked at the floor, refusing to meet the eyes of their Hokage.

Etsu eventually lifted her head and stared defiantly into the eyes of her Hokage, "We weren't wrong for repeating what we've heard, if Kakashi couldn't take a little gossip then maybe he's not as mature as everyone likes to think."

The Hokage stared the girl down, "Etsu I would hold my tongue if I were you. My dear, you are the one that started the entire fight and the one that is in the most trouble. You slandered the name of both of Kakashi's parents and he reacted accordingly; even when Naru tried to stop the fight you took a cheap shot at her and broke her nose."

The Hokage broke eye contact with Etsu to look at the group as a whole, "You will each be punished for your actions. I hope you realize that Konoha shinobi do not turn on each other, Sakumo was never branded as a traitor which gave you no right to persecute him. Therefore I've determined that you four Genin are in no shape or form ready to be Chunin, you four are barred from taking the Chunin Exam for an entire year or until I see fit. If I hear of any of you doing something like this again then I will increase the length of time from one year to two."

Etsu looked like she was going to protest but Aoba glared at her harshly to keep her quiet. "You four will also return to the Academy to retake the class on respecting superior officers and I'm having all of you written up for insubordination. You should have listened when Naru told you to stop, she out ranks you and had every right to call off the fight."

The four Genin nodded at their punishment, "I'm also giving each of you a specific job for the next three months and you won't like your jobs. They are dirty jobs with no pay and you will work hard while serving the entirety of your punishment. Do you four understand?"

"Yes sir."

The Hokage nodded and went to sit back in his chair, "I have just two more things this punishment will have and then I will give your personal assignments for the next three months. Once Naru gets back from her latest mission, there will be a face to face apology to both Hatakes and Naru. I'm also arranging for the four of you to visit the shinobi jail because the next time something like this happens that is where you will be going. After you finish your first day of punishment you will all report here to be taken by Uchiha Fugaku to the jail, understood?"

The Genin nodded and waited for the Hokage to give them their assignments. "Hyuuga Aimi, I have thought long and hard about your assignment before deciding that I'm allowing your clan deal with your punishment."

Aimi blinked rapidly, "But Hokage-sama, isn't there anything else I could do? Please don't tell the clan!"

"I'm sorry Aimi, they've already been informed. Hyuuga Hizashi is waiting outside for you. Remember my words Aimi and learn from them." Aimi weakly nodded before leaving the office and meeting a very stern looking Hizashi. She didn't speak to him, only sighed and looked defeated.

"Tomoko Suzume, for the next three months you will help the Inuzuka clan with their dogs. Whatever Tsume tells you to do then you do it and that includes cleaning out the dog pens."

Suzume looked like she was going to cry before running her hands through her hair, "Yes sir." Suzume walked out of the office to meet Inuzuka Tsume.

"Yamashiro Aoba, I'm sending you to help in the Akimichi kitchens. This is a huge job and you will most likely be doing the grunt work like peeling potatoes and washing dishes. The Akimichi cooks will give you more information later, but you will be required to report for all three meals and for the 2 o'clock snack. Plus I'm sure you'll have to help prepare the numerous in-between snacks the clan needs to keep up their body weight." Aoba nodded before sighing and walking to the Akimichi kitchens.

The final delinquent was the one Minato wanted to personally punish, which had the Hokage slightly worried. He had no idea what Minato was going to do with the girl that had injured his daughter. "Mori Etsu, I honestly have no idea what type of punishment you will receive. I'm sending you to Namikaze Minato, he requested to take over your punishment, but I must warn you. Kakashi is his student and he has trained Naru before, so don't expect your punishment to be easy. I'm very disappointed in your actions and I hope you learn your lesson after this."

Etsu nodded before walking out of the Hokage office and bumping into a figure. She looked up into the smiling face of Namikaze Minato; his smile told her she might not survive long enough to make that jail tour.

* * *

"Sensei we've got to stop, every time I step my legs feel like they're on fire. We've been running for hours and I don't think I can go anymore."

Rafu turned to look at Tenshi and sighed, he knew the boy was in pain. Kenji walked over and began giving the injured boy more pain medication. "Tenshi this will help for now. I could try to use chakra to heal the sprain if we had the time to rest."

Rafu sighed and made a decision, "We can't keep stopping like this, fix as much of the sprain as you can and then we'll double time back to Konoha."

Raido protested, "Sensei! No, we've got to get back."

Rafu gently touched Raido's arm, "Rai, I know she's your friend but we can't push Tenshi like this. If that sprain gets too bad or goes too long without treatment then it'll never heal. We need to rest anyway or we'll never make it."

Raido sighed, "Okay, I guess I am a little tired and I don't want Tenshi to be in pain. I'm sorry I didn't notice before."

Tenshi smiled at his friend, "We want to help Naru too and as soon as Kenji finishes we'll get back on the road." Rafu sat and rested, Naru had been in captivity for half a day and there was no telling what they were doing to her.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

The clank of a door woke me up, though I doubt I ever really went to sleep in the first place. I think I just kind of drifted between the state of sleep and the state of awareness, my mind just shut down from exhaustion and from coming off of an adrenaline high. I looked around the room and saw my door was still closed and I was alone, so I assumed it must have been another cell door being opened.

I noticed that the sounds from earlier had either disappeared or I had gotten used to them. I couldn't stop myself from wondering how long I had been in the sleep-like state. I honestly had no sense of time; the only thing I remembered was that it was night when I had been captured. I had no way of knowing how much time had passed since then, nor did I really want to know. I knew that time was one of my enemies and the longer I was in captivity the greater the chance that I wouldn't make it back to Konoha grew. I pushed away those thoughts from my head as I began to become aware of my surroundings.

I lay in my cell with my hands and feet still strapped to a metal table and my head pressed against the cold surface. The temperature dropped fast in the room, which only caused the metal table to get colder. The sounds had just started up again as I shivered against my bonds and tried to block the horrific grunts and screams coming from the cell beside me. I waited for my eyes to adjust to the dark before I was able to make out the distinctive features of the room I was in.

The walls were made of stone, but from the clarity of the sounds, I knew there had to be small openings at the base of the wall where it met the floor. I stored this thought away for later, hopefully they would release me from the table but I knew not to hope too much. I lifted my head slightly and looked at the door in front of me it was completely composed of vertical metal bars held tightly together. I could tell there were no hinges on the door which meant it was a sliding door and I couldn't unscrew the hinges to escape. I sighed deeply and felt strangely calm for being inside an Iwa controlled prison; I guess my body knew that there was no point in panicking because once I started panicking I would start making mistakes and I couldn't afford to make mistakes.

I began trying to get my hands out of the bindings above my head; I tilted my head back to see if I could see the thing keeping me in place. I groaned as I looked at the device, it wasn't regular set of handcuffs; it looked to be a piece of twisted metal around my wrists multiple times. If I moved my arms I could feel the sharp edge of the metal cut into the skin of my wrists. I stopped struggling against those bindings and tried moving my legs; they were strapped just as tightly as my wrists. I continued to squirm as the door to my cell clanged open and a tall man walked into the room, I noticed he was the same man from earlier that had stopped the one named Yuuma. I shivered as I tried to block that memory. His movements were controlled as he walked across the room, the lights overhead sparked to life as he made it to the table. I had to close my eyes at the sudden intensity of the light but his hand on the top of my head forced my eyes open again.

"Well, well, well, look what we have here. I'm glad you're awake princess because you've caused quite the stir among our forces here. Everyone's anxious to get a piece of the pretty little blonde from Konoha. We so rarely see blondes that you're going to become very popular here." He twirled a strand of my hair around his finger before letting go of it. He swept his hand across my face and harshly removed the gag from my mouth. "I'm officially welcoming you to Fort Kei, current location of one of Iwa's top T&I operations and the last place you'll ever visit in this lifetime. Congratulations princess, you've been given a one-way ticket to Hell and what a fun ride you will have."

He stopped his speech and walked over to the door; I let out a shaky breath and tried to ignore his speech. I knew he was just trying to get me to panic and spill whatever information he wanted. I knew I was playing with fire but I wasn't one to be messed with. "A one-way ticket huh? Can we stop for ice cream on the way?"

My voice dripped with sarcasm and I watched his face darken before laughter erupted and echoed around the room. It made me feel uncomfortable and sent shivers down my spine, "Aren't you just the little comedian? I think I know something to fix that sarcastic attitude."

He walked around to my head and began pulling my hair back; I hadn't cut my hair in months so it reached to the middle of my shoulder blades. He combed a finger through it before taking out a kunai and slicing through the thick strands. He continued chopping away at my hair until I could feel his hands close to my scalp. He roughly grabbed my cheek, pinching the skin between his thumb and forefinger, "Now don't you look pretty. Such a shame that your smart mouth got you into so much trouble, next time I'll cut something else off." He walked away and pocketed his kunai before opening the door and walking out. I could still hear him outside my cell, "They'll bring your food later and then they'll release your bindings, until then have fun." I needed to get out and I needed to get out now.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

"Come on Kakashi!" I sighed as I heard Dad call me from the living room, we had to deliver his paperwork to the Hokage Tower and then the Hokage would give him back his active shinobi status. Needless to say, it was a very important day for us. I ran down the stairs, sliding slightly on the bottom step, and skidded to a stop in front of him. He smiled at me before ruffling my hair, "We need to hurry to the Hokage Tower because Minato wants us to meet him later." I nodded and we headed out to the Hokage Tower.

Traveling through the market was still not my favorite place to travel, just because my dad didn't commit suicide didn't mean the villagers had forgiven him. We still got the heated glares and rotten fruit, but Dad took it all in stride. He would simply side step the thrown objects and smile, I think he realized just how much he had left to accomplish on earth and he wasn't ready to leave any time soon. Buying food was still a chore, the local farmers were slowly dropping their prices for us, thanks to one very angry Naru, and the other merchants weren't running us off. I considered that a step in the right direction.

We reached the Hokage Tower and quickly made our way to the Hokage's Office, as we neared the door I couldn't help but notice four very familiar faces standing outside the door. My eyes widened as I recognized my attackers, Dad noticed me tense up but I avoided his questioning look as we walked past the four Chunin. Dad knocked on the door and the Hokage called us in. "Good morning you two. I take it that you're ready to be placed back on active duty Sakumo?"

Dad laughed, "Yeah, I think I'm more than ready."

The Third opened a cabinet and took out Dad's Chunin vest and forehead protector; he smiled before handing them over to Dad. "Welcome back on to the roster Sakumo, I've got a B-ranked delivery mission for you if you're ready."

Dad laughed and began putting his vest on, his forehead protector had been the very first thing he put back on, "Why not? I've had a long enough vacation, is it a solo mission?"

The Hokage nodded, "You should be back by tomorrow evening at the latest."

Dad nodded and took the scroll from the Third, who turned to me with a serious look in his eyes, "Kakashi I need you to do something for me. Those four Chunin standing outside my door, were those the ones that attacked you?"

I nodded, "Yes sir."

The Hokage nodded, "Good, I know I have the right people then. Thank you, both of you are dismissed."

The four Chunin were ushered into the office as we left, Dad stopped outside the Tower and turned towards me, "I hate to leave so soon, but I haven't been on a mission in weeks and I'm getting a little antsy being stuck in the village."

I chuckled, "I understand. Do you want me to tell Sensei that you were called off on a mission?"

Dad nodded, "Yeah and stay with him tonight, either at his house or ours. I don't want you at the house by yourself."

I pouted, "Why not? I've stayed by myself before."

He nodded, "I know, but with everything that's been going on I just don't want you by yourself okay?"

I nodded in defeat, "Okay."

He sighed before putting a hand on my shoulder, "I'll see you tomorrow, please make sure Minato doesn't burn my house down if you stay at home."

I smiled and nodded, he grinned before wrapping me in a quick hug and heading home to get ready for his mission. I shook my head and headed off to find Sensei, I could faintly feel his chakra on the training ground, but he wasn't alone.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo groaned in anger as he made his way up the front porch steps, a note had been pinned to his door with a kunai. It listed twenty reasons why he should have been executed as a traitor for his crimes against Konoha. There were also several phrases and words written across the door in paint.

He just sighed before balling the paper up and tossing it into the trash can, he knew people were still angry, but this whole attack his house thing was getting old. He produced a clone and commanded it to clean the graffiti whlie he got his bag ready for the mission. He sighed as he watched his clone begin scrubbing the door.

Even though Sakumo had come home to find the animosity of the villagers was still there, he couldn't help but feel excited about his first mission in weeks.

The White Fang of Konoha was ready to run again.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

They did bring my food to me and with my food they brought more Iwa ninjas, there were three of them in the cell and one outside. Two held me down, one unlocked my bindings, and the last one stood with my food outside the cell door. I knew if I could get away from the ones holding my hands then I could run through the open door, but unfortunately they were holding on tight. The two holding me dropped me unceremoniously on the floor and dared me to move a muscle. They slowly backed out of the cell with their third partner and waited for the orders of the fourth man. I could tell from his voice that he was the one from earlier, "Thanks boys, I'll take it from here."

I sat in the corner, behind the table, and waited for him. I didn't have a plan, but I was going to wing it. "We meet again princess. I think it's time I told you my name, it will forever haunt you till the day you die, which will be as soon as I get what I want from you. You will know me simply as Tero and I'm going to make your worst nightmares come true."

He walked closer and I crouched low to the ground, I didn't have chakra, but I had my fists and feet. He stopped right in front of me and smirked down at me. I snarled, I really didn't like this guy. The grogginess from earlier had completely left my body and while his eyes were sizing me up, I took the opportunity to pounce. I quickly pushed myself off of the cold floor and attacked him. He blocked every punch and kick before grabbing my leg and slamming my body into the stone wall.

I gasped loudly as the wind was knocked out of me and I felt his hands harshly grip the shortened strands of my hair. I kicked for his groin, but he grabbed my leg with the hand that wasn't holding my hair and twisted painfully. I howled in pain as he dropped me and kicked me in the gut, coughing, I stayed down. I barely noticed that the plate of food had been knocked to the ground and had scattered across the cold floor.

He reared back and slapped me across the face before gripped my chin, "The fire burns bright in you little one and I'm going to enjoy stomping that fire out. Try something like that again and it's your funeral." I nodded and he left the room, locking the door behind him. The lights cut out and I was left alone with a plate of spilled food. It was fine, I wasn't going to eat or drink it anyway because there was no telling what they put in there.

I closed my eyes to calm myself down and stood up on shaky and sore legs. I had to inspect my surroundings to see if there was any way to escape. There wasn't a single loose stone on the wall or even a crack. I felt the base of the wall along the floor and felt the slightest air flow from the other cell, but it wasn't anything that would help me.

I sighed and sat with my back to the wall, I couldn't lose hope. I closed my eyes and tried to remember the Chunin Exams. I had been trained for situations like this, all I had to do was keep a calm head and say nothing. Sensei's words entered my head, "Go to your happy place." I nodded, when the time came I would be ready for it, or so I hoped.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Aoba stood elbow deep in soapy water. His very first task was to wash all one hundred and fifty plates, cups, forks, knifes, and saucers from yesterday's meals. When Aoba saw the mountain of dishes waiting for him he died a little inside and as he washed each dish in scalding water before scrubbing them clean, he made up his mind, he was through with Etsu. She only caused him trouble and no girl was worth what he was doing now.

One of the Akimichi chefs walked into the kitchen with several more pots and pans and placed them beside the stacks of dishes. Aoba sighed before nodding and continuing his washing, he was going to take his punishment seriously because he knew he deserved it.

* * *

Aimi was on her knees, head bowed low to the ground, as Hizashi paced the floor in front of her. He had called her out for being a disgrace to the clan and to all of Konoha. He had harshly cut her down to size and was still telling her all about the shame she had brought upon the clan.

Aimi nodded in agreement with what her relative said, she knew everything he said was true. Hizashi called out to her and she lifted her head to look into his eyes, they were not cold, but caring as he handed her a broom and told her to start sweeping. She was going to spend the day working with the maids and the evening helping train the young byakugan users of the family.

Aimi paled, that meant she would simply become a punching bag for the little ninjas-to-be and it was going to hurt.

* * *

Suzume blinked in surprise as a slimy puppy was thrust into her arms; instinctively she cradled the disgusting bundle and quickly placed it in the basket with its brothers and sisters. Suzume had chosen the wrong day to be sent to the Inuzuka compound, one of the breed dogs had went into labor and her job was to clean up the mess left behind. It was nasty work and she could feel the nastiness setting into her hair. Tsume yelled for her to stop lollygagging and she raced back to the birth room, not before slipping and falling into the slimy mess from the birth.

Suzume couldn't stop herself from wondering if hurting Naru was worth this.

* * *

Minato sat on a tree branch and watched Etsu run suicides with ten pound weights on her back. She had been running the suicides for about an hour and was slowing down; Minato twirled a kunai around his finger and threw it at the girl. "Speed it up or more weights get added!"

Etsu stopped completely and glared at the figure in the tree, "You can't do this to me! You are not my Sensei."

Minato laughed, "No I'm not, but I'm in charge of your punishment so either get to running or get in the push-up position, on second thought, push-up position, now!"

Etsu groaned and got into push-up position, "Start, I'll tell you when to stop."

She started her push-ups, cursing the entire time, "Watch your mouth or the punishment will increase."

Minato was watching her work when Kakashi ran into the clearing, "Sensei."

"Come up here with me Kakashi-kun." Kakashi walked up the tree and sat beside his Sensei on the branch, "Keep going Etsu, soon it'll be time for your tour." Minato turned back to Kakashi, "Where's your Dad?"

Kakashi eye-smiled at him, "The Hokage gave him a mission and he's supposed be back tomorrow sometime. He asked if I could stay with you tonight."

Minato ruffled his students hair, "Yeah but I'm going to need your help later."

Kakashi tilted his head in question, "With what?"

Minato smiled before tilting his head back to look into the blue sky, "Tonight I'm telling Kushina about Naru. She came in late last night and has been sleeping all morning, so by the time I'm done with Etsu she should be up."

Kakashi nodded, "What ya got in mind?"

Minato ruffled Kakashi's hair, "We'll talk about it later right now I need to finish this punishment. I'll come find you around two, so go find something to do till then. Just stay out of trouble Kakashi." Kakashi rolled his eyes at his Sensei before hopping down and landing perfectly on the ground.

Etsu watched as Kakashi ran off, he didn't even spare her a passing glance. "Okay Etsu, stand up. I want you to report to the Nara deer fields tomorrow and everyday till the end of your punishment, then once you finish there you are to report here. I will have a regime laid out for you and you will complete it. I'm eventually going to drill respect into that thick head of yours. Shikaku will inform you of your duties tomorrow but make no mistake; it will be messy and nasty." Minato produced a clone, and handed the clone a bag of kunai and shuriken. "I'm in need of target practice, get ready to dodge." Etsu's eyes widened as she watched the clone take aim, respect was a giant pill to swallow.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I sighed as I made my way around the market, with Sensei on punishment duty and both Dad and Naru being on missions, I was left to myself. I could have trained or taken a mission around the village, but it was already nearing the afternoon and there was no point in starting something with only the few short hours of daylight I had left. I idly kicked a rock on the road in front of me before watching it bounce down the deserted street. "Kakashi!"

I blinked before turning around and seeing Gai running towards me. He slid to a stop before smiling at me, "Good afternoon Kakashi, I challenge you to a contest. We're tied 2 to 2 and I believe I can break that today."

Even though I knew he couldn't see it, I smiled at him and said the words I never thought I would willingly say to Gai, "Okay, what's the challenge?"

Gai laughed, "I challenge you to a hand stand competition."

I raised an eyebrow at him before sighing, "Okay where are we doing this at?"

Gai led me over to the side of the road and nodded, "Right here should be good." We both got into position, "Ready, set, go!"

Seeing the world upside down is almost as fun as seeing it right side up. Everything is the same but different, kind of like the two timelines, so different but so much the same. I felt the blood rushing to my head, but ignored it; the wind rustled the branches and moved the leaves across the grass. I felt myself sway and before I could stop it, I found myself laying flat on my back and looking up at a still upside down Gai.

He laughed in victory as he landed on his butt, "I've been practicing. The next challenge is your choice."

I rolled my eyes at him, "I'll have to think about it then."

Gai nodded before noticing the sun, "Oh crud, I'm late. I'll see you later Kakashi."

I waved bye to him but remembered something I was supposed to ask him, "Hey Gai, can you watch Aki when I'm deployed?"

Gai nodded, "Of course that's what friends are for." I smiled as he walked off, friends with Gai? Who would have thought it?

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

"Hello princess!" I sighed as I watched Tero walk back into the room with that hideous smile on his face. "It's time." I blinked, what exactly did that mean? He whistled, "Come in boys and get her ready for transport." Three more Iwa shinobi entered the cell, each carrying a rope and those twisted metal cuffs. I snarled at them and crouched low to the ground; one quickly got me from behind and slapped the cuffs on my wrists. I kicked his shin and was met with a fist to the face.

I spit out blood and a tooth from the impact and watched as they grabbed me and placed me back on the table and tightly tied my legs together. Two shinobi carried me out of my cell and into the hallway and what I saw made me wish they had blindfolded me. There were three other prisoners on the hallway I was on, one female and two males. Both males were missing limbs and bleeding profusely, the female was dressed in rags and flinched at the slightest noise. My heart broke for them and I wanted to save them, but first I had to get myself out of this predicament.

They took me to a huge room with a metal chair in the middle of the room and with five closed doors on the surrounding walls, something told me I didn't want to know what was in those rooms. The two shinobi that were carrying me placed me in the chair and began strapping me down and removing my transport bindings. After they were done, Tero came to stand in front of me and clapped. The lights dimmed and a tray was brought into the room full sharp metal tools, some I had never seen before.

Tero paced in front of me and smirked, "Let's get something straight, everything I say is law and when I say something it usually gets done. I told you not to try anything again and you did. I can't let that alone, now can I? You disobeyed a direct order so obviously you haven't learned your lesson yet. I've got something that will help you remember next time."

My eyes widened as he picked up a pair of pliers and I watched in morbid fascination as he brought the metal tools close to my eyes. He was making sure I saw the entire thing before leaning close to my face, "Let's hear you scream."

I blinked and he harshly pried my mouth open and inserted the pliers into my mouth. I felt the metal around my canine tooth and sucked in a breath as I realized what he was going to do, but before I could protest or move he ripped the pliers out of my mouth, taking my tooth with them. I heard myself scream as I watched my tooth fall to the metal tray and felt blood run down my chin. I clamped my mouth shut and drew as far back from him as I could, but instead of going for the other tooth, he laughed and dropped the bloody pliers on the metal tray. "Will you listen to me now?"

I didn't do anything because I couldn't do anything; I was in shock and stared numbly at the wall. He growled slightly before gently stroking my cheek, "I'm only telling you this once princess, you will listen when I speak and you'll answer me. I've got a couple of questions for you and you will answer them. Do you understand?" I felt myself nod and he grinned, 'Good, let's get started."

He stood in front of me, "Now why were you at the warehouse?"

I bit my tongue; I wasn't giving out any information. He sighed, "Being stubborn will not get you anywhere, now why were you at the warehouse?" I stared straight ahead and began to think back to my happy place. I knew if I could detach myself then I would do just fine against whatever he had in store for me.

Tero growled, "Okay let's start smaller; from the report I know your name is Naru. Naru why don't you tell me what you were doing at the warehouse?"

I looked innocently into his face and smiled sweetly, "Considering that the thing burned to the ground I'm pretty sure someone in Iwa can figure out why we were at the warehouse. We cooked smores and forgot to put our fire out."

Yeah I was playing with fire, but he didn't know who he was dealing with. I was Uzu Naru and I wasn't just going to lie down and die for him. "Smart-aleck, it seems that losing a tooth wasn't enough to get you to cooperate with me."

He walked away from me and came back with a syringe full of yellow liquid. He grinned as he jabbed the needle into my arm, "This is a drug developed by Iwa; it's the closest thing to pure adrenaline we can get. It causes the heart to beat faster than normal limits and usually causes extreme and gut wrenching chest pains. Let's see how long you last."

The first ten minutes I felt nothing, not even the slightest race in heart pace. I sighed and looked at the man in front of me expectantly, I honestly wondered if his drug even worked. Usually Kyuubi took care of any drug injected into my system but with the seal that was placed on me I had no idea if he would be able to flush the drug out this time. Only time would tell. Tero paced and grinned as my face twitched from the slight pain I had felt.

I shook it off, the pain wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be, of course the pain only got worse. My breathing increased as I tried to breathe through the pain, but instead of helping, it only made the tightening feeling in my chest increase. I could feel my heart jerking and pumping to send blood to my organs, but my heart felt like it was full of needles. Each pump caused the needles to thrust deeper into already weeping wounds. I bit back a scream but couldn't stop the silent tears from falling down my cheeks.

Tero enjoyed that, he laughed before wiping one away and whispering in my ear, "The fun's only begun princess. I told you once before, I'll break you, it's a guarantee." I didn't answer; my mind was numb to everything but the crippling pain in my chest and the uneven breaths I would get out every so often. By the time I was thirty minutes into the session I had stopped trying to bite back my screams, I let them fly into the still air. Forty minutes into the session and my throat was too raw for me to do anything except make small whimpering noises.

An hour later I was thrown into my cell with a cup of water and a plate of food, which I immediately kicked both away. The men that took me to my cell sneered before locking the door behind them. I could hear the female prisoner in the cell next to mine sobbing, but I couldn't bring myself to sob with her.

I placed my head on my arms and laid down, my throat burned and my gums hurt along with the ghost aches I was still experiencing from the drugs. As I lay on the cold floor I noticed that the metal table had been removed from my cell and was replaced with a bucket. I assumed this to be my bathroom. I closed my eyes and blocked out the sobs and screams from the other prisoners as I tried to concentrate on anything that wasn't tearing me to pieces.

That's when I heard the gentle drip-drip of falling water. I blinked before looking to the farthest corner and seeing a slow but steady flow of water from the pipe in the ceiling. It was coming from a hole in the pipe in sporadic spurts, but it smelled clean so I knew it wasn't the sewage line. I wanted to cry at my luck as I crawled over to the stream and let the cool water work its way down my sore throat.

As long as I had water I would make it, I knew I could survive and besides, Kakashi would never forgive me if I left him alone to complete our mission.

I had a future to see.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Minato dropped Etsu off at the Hokage Tower, where four Chunin and three other Genin were waiting for her. They had been a tad bit late because Etsu didn't clean the steps to the Hokage Monument fast enough.

Minato sighed, honestly the girl needed to learn to work faster and complain less. Minato was determined to smile though, he was going to finally break it to Kushina about Naru and he knew she would accept her. Minato stopped by the Yamanaka flower shop and bought a bouquet of daisies, he could vaguely remember Kushina mentioning something about daisies so he just guessed that they were her favorites.

He walked briskly to the Hatake home, which he hoped Kakashi was at.

* * *

Kakashi had been sitting on the couch reading when Minato walked into the door clutching the daisies and practically skipping into the kitchen. "Sensei?"

Minato laughed before skipping back out of the kitchen with a vase full of water for the daisies. "Come on 'Kashi-kun, you're going to help me get ready for tonight."

Kakashi sighed before dragging himself off of the couch and into the kitchen, "What are you planning to do?"

Minato tapped his foot, "I've got this huge dinner planned out and I'm either going to tell her over dinner or dessert. There are only a couple of problems."

"Like what?" Minato looked sheepish before replying, "I can't cook the meal because I have a couple of errands to run, so could you help me, oh favoritest student of mine?"

Kakashi snorted, "Sensei, 'favoritest' isn't a word, but I'll help you anyway. What are we cooking?"

Minato went into the kitchen and pulled out a cookbook, "I'm thinking something with chicken because Kushina likes chicken and possibly for dessert a cake. I'm not going to be specific about the side dishes; we just stay away from anything that looks like broccoli."

Kakashi nodded before thumbing through the cookbook, "We can make Yakitori, I know we have some leeks and I'm sure we have chicken somewhere. I'm pretty sure we have the other stuff too."

Minato smiled before looking at the picture on the cookbook, Yakitori was simply grilled chicken speared on wooden sticks but it would be perfect for what he had planned tonight. "Okay I like that, let's make some fried rice and steamed asparaguses to go with the chicken and everything will be complete."

Kakashi walked over to the refrigerator before mentally taking note of the ingredients they would need. "We're going to need some rice, sugar, and asparaguses because we're out."

Minato nodded, "I'll head to the market and you start the chicken. I'll send a toad later on to get Kushina."

Kakashi waved his sensei off and began taking the chicken out of the refrigerator. He grabbed a pan from the cabinet and pushed the stool to the stove with his foot. He placed the pan on the stove and grabbed a bowl to wash the chicken in before dumping the clean strips of meat into the pan. With a flick of his wrist, Kakashi turned on the stove and watched as the strips of meat began cooking.

* * *

"I've got something for you."

An older white haired man blinked before looking around the bar, "Something? What kind of something?"

The younger dark haired woman sat on the stool beside the man before looking into his eyes, "How about I buy you a drink and we take this back to your room?"

The white haired man nodded before ordering two more drinks, gripping the woman's hand and leading her up to his room. Once they entered the room the woman turned and placed a silencing jutsu over the room. She turned and saluted the white haired man, "Sir, I've come back with disturbing news."

The man nodded, "Continue."

"A few days ago Konoha sent a five man team to destroy a warehouse in Rokku that was holding supplies for Iwa, they completed their mission successfully, but something happened and the team was attacked. We do not know the status of the team, but we do know that a Kunoichi was captured. The little blonde haired girl that was taken was last seen twenty miles from Rokku and heading west. We've been on the lookout since then but haven't seen or heard anything, but I believe she's alive."

The white haired man sighed and ran a hand down his cheeks, "Okay, I'm returning to Konoha because I doubt her team made it back, there's still a possibility she could be alive."

The woman nodded, "Do you want me to return to Iwa?"

The man shook his head, "No, you risked blowing your cover by coming here, head to Whirlpool and lay low for a while. Keep an eye on the activity there because I have a feeling that's going to become the next battlefield."

The woman nodded before bowing again, "As you wish Jiraiya-sama."

The white haired man, now known as Jiraiya, snorted before waving the woman off, "What have I told you about that? I'm not some lord or king, just call me Jiraiya."

The woman smiled, "Of course, till we meet again Jiraiya."

Jiraiya sighed as he watched her leave before packing his things and leaving out the window. He knew the window of opportunity for saving the girl was very short, which meant he needed to get to Konoha fast.

* * *

Tero watched the girl sleep from outside her cell. He couldn't help but admire and curse her spirit, she was strong and it would take a lot to break her, but he was determined to break her. He turned on his heel and walked back to the interrogation chamber, the huge room housed five connecting rooms; their doors had been sealed shut when Naru was occupying the room. He smirked as he looked at the five doors; each held a torture technique more horrible than the one before it.

Naru would get the honor of meeting door number one tomorrow and if she still didn't answer his questions then she'd go to door number two. He had seen the looks from the other interrogators, they didn't understand how he could torture a child like that; Tero wasn't stupid though. He knew the cute little girl would kill him if he gave her half a chance; she was a shinobi, regardless of age, and she acted like a shinobi.

Though through all of the disbelief that he would torture the girl, there were also some in the fort that wanted to have fun with her, but as long as Tero was her interrogator she wouldn't be touched in a perverse way. He wanted to know it was his techniques that destroyed her mind, not some man that was tired of playing with the other female prisoners. Tero smiled as he walked over to door number one and peered into the small window, the ground appeared to be moving as he watched them.

He smirked, everyone had their breaking point and finding hers was going to be fun.

* * *

Rafu held his breath as he pushed Raido's head into the dirt; they had almost gotten caught by an Iwa patrol squad. Rafu had all but extinguished his chakra signal in hopes that the patrols would bypass their location. A female shinobi walked closely to the bushes they were hiding in and reached into the bush to pick a berry from the tree. "Nothing here but berries, we should try a little more north."

The other shinobi agreed and left the clearing. Tenshi left out a sigh of relief as soon as they were sure the enemy ninjas were gone, "That was a close one."

Rafu nodded before helping his students up, he had all but thrown them underneath the bush when he felt the presence of the Iwa ninjas. They were still a good day's travel from Konoha and had to stop to rest, there was no way they could go on if they didn't. "We'll stop here for a couple of hours and then head out again. We're making great time though." Raido didn't say anything and Kenji just went around checking bandages and healing up wounds.

* * *

Minato stood beside Kakashi and watched the boy pour a mixture of maple syrup and sugar on the meats in the pan. Minato stirred the rice in his pan and added small pieces of egg and onion. "Do you think she'll like it 'kashi?"

Kakashi looked away from his cooking and nodded, "Of course she will Sensei, she loves you."

Minato blushed slightly before stirring the rice again, "You really think so?"

Kakashi didn't miss a beat before replying, "Well she puts up with everything you do so she obviously loves you."

Minato chuckled before ruffling Kakashi's hair, "That she does."

"Sensei, don't forget to add the pepper."

Minato rolled his eyes, "Kakashi I've made fried rice about a million times so I doubt I'm going to forget to add the pepper."

Minato blindly reached for what he thought was the pepper, but instead of grabbing the regular pepper from the spice rack in the cabinet, he grabbed the cayenne pepper. Minato poured a hefty amount into the friend rice mix and turned the stove off. Kakashi's nose twitched at the difference of smells, but he ignored it, Minato said he knew what he was doing and Kakashi trusted him.

Kakashi plucked the chicken out of the pan and placed them on the wooden spears, making the meal complete. The asparaguses had already been steamed and plated while Minato was fixing the rice.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I sighed as I watched Sensei summon a messenger toad and send him to Kushina. "Okay Kakashi, will you play our waiter tonight?"

I sighed but agreed, "What do you want me to do?"

The toad came back, sporting a throbbing bump on the head, and told us that after Kushina hit him for popping in on her while taking a shower, that she agreed to be there in twenty minutes. Minato-sensei dismissed the toad and began pacing the floor and practicing how he was going to break the news to Kushina. I snorted before walking over to him and shaking his arm, because it was the only thing I could reach. "Sensei, stop pacing you're making me dizzy. Just don't think about it and let it come naturally. I doubt Kushina is going to leave you for having a daughter."

Sensei smiled at me before reaching down and engulfing me into a hug, "Thanks Kakashi, I really needed that."

I smiled back at him, "Okay seriously Sensei, what do you want me to do?"

Sensei dragged me into the kitchen, "Okay I'm going to rearrange some furniture in the living room and put the kitchen table in the living room, so you can stay in here and make dessert without us being in the way."

I nodded and watched Sensei make five clones, they all got to work pushing furniture into a corner and setting the table in the middle of the room. Aki barked at them before running into the kitchen with me, she wasn't enjoying having her home taken over by Minato clones. Sensei then went upstairs and got a bag, which held a white table cloth and two candles. I climbed up on the countertop and reached into the top cabinet to get the matching plate set for Sensei. "Sensei I've got the dishes."

He quickly came in there and took them from me and set the table. By the time Kushina entered the yard the entire table was set and I was ready to plate the food for them. I couldn't wait to see how this evening went.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Minato greeted Kushina at the door with a smile on his face and daisies in his hands hidden behind his back. She smiled brightly at him before walking up to kiss his cheek, never noticing the daisies. Minato stopped her and kissed her lips gently, "I've got something to tell you Kushina."

The red haired girl raised an eyebrow in question, "Well spit it out."

"Kushina, you know Sakumo's student Naru right?"

Kushina nodded, "Yeah I haven't met her yet, but I know of her."

Minato took this time to thrust the flowers forward and tightly shut his eyes as he spoke, "Well she's actually my.."

"ACHOO!"

Minato slowly opened his eyes to see Kushina rapidly wiping her nose and pushing the flowers away, "Minato I told you I was a-a-allergic to ACHOO daisies."

Minato sheepishly grinned before throwing the flowers into the yard, "I'm sorry I got them mixed up, I have been busy with missions lately." Kushina waved it off and entered the house, Minato could faintly hear Kakashi chuckle from the kitchen. "Here let me get your chair for you."

Kushina snorted at him and pulled out her own chair before sitting down, "I'm perfectly capable of getting my own chair thank you very much. Now what were you saying about Naru?"

Kakashi took that moment to walk into the faux dining room with the food. "Eat up."

Kushina smiled before shaking her head, "I think that's exploiting your authority Minato, getting your student to cook your meals."

Kakashi eye-smiled at her. "Sensei cooked a majority of it, just for you. He wouldn't even let me touch the fried rice." Kakashi walked out of the room and waited in the kitchen to begin baking that cake, little did he know, they would never make it to dessert.

Kushina and Minato began eating, idle chatter soon floated around the room. Kushina dug heartily into the rice and began eating the dish her lover had fixed for her. Minato took a deep breath before trying to reproach the subject of Naru, "Kushina what I was going to say before is that Naru is my…"

Kushina's eyes had popped wide and she was grabbing at her throat. Minato sprung into action, thinking she was choking, and began the Heimlich maneuver, Kushina shook her head before croaking out one word, "Water."

Kakashi had heard and seen the sequence of events from the kitchen and quickly grabbed Kushina a glass of water. She took it from his hands and greedily drank it, she was breathing heavily as she glared at Minato, "Did you do that on purpose?"

Minato shook his head, "No, I would never. I must have grabbed the wrong spice."

Kushina coughed again and hesitantly tried the Yakitori; luckily for her it was good. Kakashi returned to the kitchen and couldn't stop the laughter from erupting. Minato was trying too hard and nothing was going right.

Kushina never made it to dessert, her allergies to the daisies kept acting up and the longer she stayed near Minato, the harder she sneezed. "ACHOO, Minato I'm going h-home, s-see you ACHOO later."

Minato sighed and leaned over to kiss her cheek but was met with a sense. "Okay well I've got to stay with Kakashi till Sakumo gets back, so I'll see you tomorrow."

Kushina laughed, "Do you promise to not try to kill me tomorrow?"

Minato scoffed at her, "I wasn't trying to kill you."

"Sure you weren't Minato." She left the house mumbling something about allergy medicine.

Minato looked at Kakashi and smiled, "Well that went well."

Kakashi chuckled, "It could have been worst."

"Sure it could've been. Let's go clean up, you do know that Naru should be coming home either tomorrow or the day after that?" Kakashi nodded before heading into the kitchen to start washing dishes.

* * *

Tero walked into Naru's cell with two buckets of cold, nearly frozen water and dumped them on top of her head. She screamed before yelling at her Sensei. Tero smirked; the girl had forgotten she was in captivity. "Did you hope you'd wake up and all of this would be a nightmare?"

Tero watched in glee as Naru realized where she was and what he was going to do to her. Naru stood up and let the cold water drip down her face and body, she snarled at Tero but didn't attack. His smirk grew wider and he brought his hands together to perform a series of complicated hand seals. Naru's eyes rolled into the back of her head as the sleep genjutsu took over her body and she slumped to the ground.

Tero walked across the water and picked her up and carried her into the interrogation room. He stopped right in front of the door marked number one. He gently opened the door and watched as the animals scattered away from the blinding light. He stood in the doorway and dropped Naru to the floor, one of her bones made a sickening cracking sound as he kicked her body further into the cell. He closed the door behind him, released the genjutsu and waited; he was excited to see how she would last against his pets.

Rats were really the most amazing animals.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

The pain was searing and tearing me to pieces, for a little bit I believed I was back in the metal chair with the liquid adrenaline pumping through my heart and veins, but when I tried to move my arm I knew then that it was one of the bones there.

I could vaguely feel the slightest movement around me; something would brush against my leg or arm, and then would disappear. I couldn't see anything in front of me or around me, my eyes still hadn't adjusted to the darkness in the room, but my nose had. The room smelled like decay and disease and there was another scent that I couldn't place. I cradled my broken arm to my side and whimpered against the teeth clenching pain, I felt down my arm until I felt the break in the bone.

I closed my eyes and thought back to Tsunade's lessons on taking care of myself, she had given me instructions for setting bones back into place and I knew if I didn't set it soon that it would grow crooked, which would hinder my aim. I was panting heavily as I gripped the end of my arm at the wrist and harshly tugged the bone back into place.

My scream echoed off of the stone walls and black spots danced before my eyes as I succumbed to the pain and passed out.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Naru was out for four hours after she set her broken bone by herself, but when she came to it was to tears and screams. She couldn't find her happy place with the searing pains running down her spine and around her arm. Naru finally managed to get her sobs and screams down to slight whimpers and silent tears. She breathed easier before thinking back to the last prank her and Kakashi had played.

A smile came to her face as she saw Rafu's face after being bombarded with all sorts of sticky and messy materials. Shima sporting his purple and pink glitter was the next thing Naru thought about, she clung to that image and ignored the pain in her body. A noise brought Naru out of her trance and for the first time Naru saw exactly what was in the room with her, rats and lots of them. Naru raised an eyebrow before chuckling at her interrogators; rats didn't bother her at all.

She smiled before stiffly getting onto both legs and walking over to the nearest wall and sitting with her back against it. The rats ran around her and some of the braver ones crawled closer before darting back again. She knew they probably carried all sorts of diseases, but for that moment it didn't matter. She was safe and not being tortured on a table, life was good for now.

Hours later Tero opened the door and growled as he saw her sitting comfortably against a wall, the rats around her not causing her a tiny bit of trouble or fear. He stalked into the room and grabbed her uninjured arm before dragging her out of the room and slamming her into the metal chair. He strapped her in place and watched in triumph as she cried from the jarring of her broken arm. "Tell me your mission Naru."

She shook her head through the tears; Tero gripped the shortened strands of her hair, "What is Konoha doing Naru?"

Naru stared blankly ahead; her mind was miles away pranking the Jounin with Kakashi at her side. Tero snarled and slapped her across the face, knocking her back to reality. "Naru tell me what Konoha's plans are."

Naru glared through her tears and with all of the venom she could find in her body she answered him, "NO!" Tero walked away from her and took a deep breath before walking back over and punching her in the stomach. The spots danced in front of Naru's eyes once more and all she saw was darkness.

Tero watched as Naru lay unconscious in her cell, he had taken to watching her sleep at night because one too many of the other male shinobi had commented about taking advantage of the girl while she slept. Tero wasn't going to let that happen, so he watched her and studied her.

He had come to realize that she liked to talk in her sleep, she usually called out to someone named Kakashi or Sakumo, she called out to her Sensei and sometimes she would whimper out the name Sasuke. She called for her daddy every night without fail. A part of Tero felt bad for what he had to do, but instead of caring, he just told himself that this girl was partly responsible for the deaths of those at the warehouse.

The fact that she also might be Namikaze Minato's daughter was an unexpected bonus.

* * *

Naru finally woke herself up and cradled her injured arm to her chest before massaging her aching stomach. She scooted her body over to the shared wall and tried talking to the woman over there. It had been a silly idea she had while she was sitting in the rat room, perhaps she could keep herself sane by talking to her cellmate. "Hello? Can you hear me?"

Naru was met with a low sob and the sound of shuffling. "Please I need someone to talk to, can you hear me?"

A hoarse voice answered, "I can hear and so can the walls."

Naru nodded but stopped because her headache didn't agree with the sudden movement. "When do the walls not hear?"

It was quiet before the hoarse voice spoke again, "They always hear, always."

Naru sighed before lying on her back with her injured arm rested against her chest. She tried one more time, "When they stop listening, then I will still hear."

A hoarse laugh was heard before a small and hopeful okay filled Naru's ear.

* * *

Tero's eyes widened as he watched the exchange between the two female captives. He was quickly discovering that Naru had a kind hearted side and he knew just the way to use that against her. If he didn't break her with the next day's door then he'd have to use his newest plan.

He walked away from the cells and stopped at another door. He tapped the door and barked into the well lit room, "Get me four civilians, two female and two male. I don't care how old or what they look like, I just need them to be disposable."

* * *

Raido wanted to cry with joy, they were inside Fire Nation's borders. Only a few short hours and they would be home free. As they passed through the trees, Raido couldn't help but look back and watch their trail fade into the dark.

The trail behind him led them to where Naru was and that killed him inside, knowing she wasn't beside him and returning safely to Konoha.

* * *

Jiraiya stretched as he stopped the constant jumping from tree to tree. He had sensed a team a few minutes before and from their chakra signals, he could tell they were heading his way. He would sit and wait to see if they were Konoha shinobi or enemy shinobi. He didn't have to wait long as four male Konoha shinobi landed in the clearing beside him. The tallest one was obviously a Jounin and the younger three were Chunin, but the one thing he noticed was their beaten up appearance. "Jiraiya-sama?"

The Toad Sage rolled his eyes before answering, "Just Jiraiya, hard mission?"

One of the boys nodded before looking back over his shoulder, toward Iwa. "Yes sir, we lost a member and we're trying to reach Konoha quickly to inform them of her capture."

Jiraiya blinked, "Your missing team member wouldn't happen to be a little blonde girl would it?"

The boy that had been looking back nodded quickly, "That's Naru, have you seen her?"

Jiraiya shook his head, "No but I've got information on her so the sooner we get back to Konoha, the sooner we can see what the Hokage's going to do." The group and their new member headed off quickly to the gates of Konoha, their destination only a few short hours away.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

My bedroom door banged open and I quickly shot out of bed to see Dad clutching his hand. "Dad?"

He chuckled, "Sorry, I didn't mean to wake you Kakashi. I was going to hit Minato and missed."

I got out of bed, "Why are you hitting Sensei?"

Sensei grinned sheepishly at me before hurrying to his bedroom, "He was being an idiot."

I smiled at dad before realizing he was home a whole lot earlier than he was supposed to be. "You're home early."

Dad waved it off, "Yeah it didn't take as long as they thought it would. So I'm ready to get in bed and sleep till noon, hey will you do me a favor later?"

I nodded and he walked into my bedroom. "Will you make sure to hurt Minato in some way? Push him off a cliff if you have to."

I laughed and Dad sat down on the bed, "Dad is that a good idea? Doesn't Konoha need him?"

Dad shrugged, "Perhaps, maybe I'm just being a little silly."

I smiled, Dad rearranged the covers around me, making sure I was comfortable. "I know it's early in the morning and you're probably ready to go back to sleep but we're getting deployed in a few months and I just wanted to see what you thought about it."

I blinked before looking up at him, I had plenty of memories of war and battles, but I had a feeling he wasn't talking about the actual battling part. He was wondering if I was going to protest having him as my commanding officer. I smiled and nuzzled my pillow before answering, "It's going to be different, but I know you won't play favorites. You'll treat me and Naru the same as everyone else."

Dad smiled before gently stroking my hair, "I hope so. Get some sleep Kakashi; I'll see you in the morning."

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Team Rafu and Jiraiya made it through the gates of Konoha just as the sun stood high in the sky, noon marked exactly two and a half days since Naru had been taken by Iwa ninjas. The five shinobi raced to the Hokage Tower and entered his office with heavy hearts. The Hokage scanned them before seeming to search for someone. "Where's Naru?"

Rafu lowered his eyes before answering, "Hokage-sama, Uzu Naru was captured shortly after the warehouse was destroyed. We couldn't go after her because of our injuries so I decided to return to Konoha for a rescue team."

The Hokage looked years older as he sighed and turned to look out the window, before alerting the two ANBU stationed outside his window. "ANBU get me Namikaze Minato, Hatake Sakumo, and Hatake Kakashi, tell them it's about Naru. Rafu get your team to the hospital and then come back here for a complete report, after we hear the report we'll make our plans and we'll let your team know."

The injured shinobi nodded and headed to the hospital. Rafu sighed before following after his team, his heart being eaten up with guilt. In his mind he was beginning to see his mistakes and he knew that Sakumo could have destroyed Fort Kei and because of his meddling he wasn't able to. In a way, Rafu was responsible for the capture of Naru.

* * *

The Hokage turned to Jiraiya, "Sit down Jiraiya; we've got some things to discuss once they get here."

Jiraiya sat down, "I figured we did, but I must ask, who is this little girl?"

The Hokage shook his head, "That's not my place to say, but you'll find out soon enough."

* * *

There was one thing Sakumo had learned from his many years of being a shinobi, when two ANBU guards showed up at your front doorstep, usually something was wrong. Kakashi hadn't looked too eager to open the door when he saw the two shinobi appear on the doorstep.

They had all just returned from a training session and were waiting for Naru to get back when the ANBUs appeared. Sakumo walked to the door and stood behind his son, Kakashi stared straight ahead as he asked, "Is it Naru?"

The ANBU just sighed, "You two and Minato have been summoned to the Hokage Tower, and yes it is about Naru."

Sakumo's eyes widened and he thanked the ANBU before rushing upstairs and finding Minato attempting to write a letter to Kushina. "Minato, we've got to get to the Hokage Tower, something about Naru." Minato dropped the letter and all three were out the door in moments.


	23. Chapter 20

**Chapter 20**

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

The ANBU at the doorstep was a wakeup call for me. It became painfully clear at that moment that there was always the possibility that things could go wrong no matter how much planning we had done. The thought was foreign to my mind. Something was wrong with Naru and I didn't know if that meant she was injured or worse. I just couldn't wrap my mind around the thought of Naru getting hurt. It made my chest ache and my head pound. She had really gotten under my skin and wormed herself into my heart. No matter how much I tried to push her away, she kept coming back. I knew that was one thing that hadn't changed from the other timeline, her determination.

We made it to the Tower in record time and I could practically feel the anxiety rolling off of Minato-sensei and Dad. They were just as worried as I was, if not more. I took a deep breath and waited with them in front of the double doors that led into the Hokage's office. I wanted to see Naru on the other side of those doors and watched as they opened to reveal a sight I hadn't expected.

Sitting in one of the four chairs in front of the Hokage's desk was a man with a long white ponytail and a scroll strapped to his back, Jiraiya. Jiraiya was in Konoha and I didn't know whether I was relieved to see him or scared of what news he brought. When the Toad Sage returned to the village it usually meant trouble for Konoha or for one of her inhabitants.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Minato blinked as he saw his Sensei for the first time in months before walking over to greet the man. "Sensei, what are you doing back in Konoha?"

Jiraiya looked at his student before turning back to the Hokage. "I'm just delivering some information and the Hokage has asked me to stay for a little while. What are you doing here?"

Minato's eyes widened before he looked towards the Hokage. "Hokage-sama, the ANBU informed us to come here."

Sakumo walked to stand beside Minato and nodded to Jiraiya before turning his entire attention to the Hokage. Kakashi slowly walked forward and stood beside his father. His eyes trained into an intense stare as he looked at the Hokage and ignored all those around him. Jiraiya studied the child's covered face before turning his attention to the Hokage. All were waiting for the Hokage to explain why they were called to him and what this had to do with Naru.

"First Minato, Sakumo, Kakashi, I would like all of you to have a seat and get comfortable because this is going to take a while before we get everything straight. Plus, we have to wait for Rafu to get back here before we can get to the details."

They all took a seat and once they were seated the Hokage began. "Uzu Naru was sent with Team Rafu to destroy a warehouse in Rokku that Iwa was using to store supplies and other items. The destruction was successful, but on the way back the team encountered a squad of Iwa ninjas and was engaged by them."

Kakashi sucked in a small breath as he waited for the next words to come out of the Hokage's mouth. "The Iwa ninjas captured Naru and took her with them. Team Rafu was too injured to trail after them and was forced to return to the village."

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

My heart skipped a beat. It was just like her capture by Akatsuki all over again, except this time Iwa was the monster that went bump in the night.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Jiraiya watched their reactions to see exactly what this faceless little girl meant to them. He had never heard of an Uzu Naru before stepping into the Hokage's office this evening. Heck, he still didn't know anything about the girl, only that she was a Konoha Kunoichi and obviously was connected to the Hatakes and Minato.

Kakashi's face was obscured by a mask, but the panic in his eyes and the slight hitch in his breathing told the Toad Sage that the girl was someone the boy treasured. The writer side of Jiraiya wondered if he could possibly use them as inspiration for his novel. Young love tended to grow at the oddest times and last the longest. Before Jiraiya let his mind wander too far into his newest story plot, he turned his attention back to the older two males.

Sakumo's face paled considerably and his hands had tightened his fists. The girl was obviously close to Sakumo too. Jiraiya's brow scrunched together in thought as he tried to figure out the girl's connection to the Hatakes. He knew there was no chance of her being a niece or cousin, so her connection had to be through something else. The only logical explanation was that Sakumo was her Sensei, which Jiraiya couldn't help but smirk at the thought. Sakumo had already cranked out one mini-shinobi. It was only fitting they let him have a go at another one.

The reaction that surprised him the most was Minato's. Not only did his student's face pale and eyes become suddenly hollow, he jumped out of his chair and stood in a daze. An absolute look of terror and disbelief shone on his face and the Toad Sage couldn't wrap his mind around the reason for Minato to feel this way.

"Let me get this straight. Iwa ninjas have Naru, my Naru? Has a rescue team been dispatched? I'll go meet up with them because there is no way I'm not going after her."

Jiraiya blinked as he ran his student's words through his head, his Naru? Who exactly was this girl?

Sakumo looked to Kakashi and felt a surprising aura of calm with a slight hysterical undertone and it pounded what they had just learned deeper into his head. Naru was being held captive by Iwa. His student was currently locked away in the belly of some torture chamber and he had no idea what they were doing to her. The not knowing terrified him more than the knowing part.

Sakumo turned to Minato and gently wrapped his hand around Minato's wrist to get his attention. "Minato, sit back down. We've got to hear everything before we get ahead of ourselves."

The Hokage nodded. "I can't send a rescue team until we hear everything surrounding Naru's capture."

Jiraiya finally spoke up. "Okay, someone tell me who this girl is because I'm tired of trying to figure it out."

The Third turned to Jiraiya before sighing wearily. "You'll know everything in due time, just be patient. Why don't you give us your report on your findings?"

Tero rubbed his eyes as he swiftly got out of his makeshift bed and headed down the hall and into the kitchen where his superior officers were waiting for him. They weren't getting answers from the little girl and the higher ups weren't too happy about that. Tero entered the kitchen and saluted the two figures sitting at the small table. They waved him forward and handed him a cup of coffee.

"Tero, this isn't going anywhere. She's been without food for two days now and she still hasn't cracked yet. I'm thinking we have to change tactics with her."

Tero sipped his coffee. "What do you suggest? Bring in a professional interrogator?"

One of the men nodded. "That's actually a very good idea. You instill fear into your clients by pain, but something tells me that this girl isn't going to be broken by pain and fear alone. I say let Shigure have a go at her, he's especially good with kids."

Tero nodded before agreeing. Shigure was the best mental interrogator in all of Iwa. He was a whiz at catching people off guard and making them feel like they could trust him. Kids adored him and hardly kept quiet after sitting down with him for an hour. The little blonde wouldn't last long with him. "Do I get her afterwards? I've already got some other things planned out for her."

Both men nodded. "We'll send Shigure to room two. She'll meet with him today and if we get what we want, then you're free to play with her."

Tero smiled before saluting his superiors and walking into the hallway. He passed Shigure in the hall as he headed to the cells to see his newest client that arrived last night.

Shigure was a man of many words and many faces. He was a master of masks and disguises and had the ability to be anyone a person needed or wanted him to be. This is what made him so deadly and valuable to Iwa, his ability to charm and smile his way into the broken hearts of their captives and he did it without breaking skin or bone. Where Tero was an artist of pain, Shigure was an artist of trust. His very presence demanded that you reach out to him and trust him.

The man was a mystery to his comrades. They didn't know if it was in his honest looking face or large soft brown eyes that drew people in and honestly they didn't care as long as he kept getting answers. Shigure met with his superior officers shortly after Tero left and was brought into the holding cells to see the girl he was going to interrogate. He peered through the bars and saw the unconscious girl, passed out from either exhaustion or from whatever pain she was in from her wounds.

He turned to the Iwa shinobi beside him. "Get a medical ninja in there and heal her. I need her healthy if this is going to work."

He turned and watched as a female medical ninja entered the cell and quickly began binding together the girl's broken bone and various wounds. "When she wakes up bring her to door number two and I'll take it from there."

The Iwa shinobi that had been standing beside him nodded and Shigure walked down the hall and into door number two. Inside was a simple metal table with two simple metal chairs. He left the room and headed to the kitchen. He pulled out the leftovers from the Iwa shinobi's supper and headed back to the room, not before stopping by his own room and grabbing a small vial. He was going to get her trust. It would only take a few tries and a couple of bites, but he would get her information.

Jiraiya nodded and began his tale. "One of my spies informed me two days ago that they had found out information regarding the capture of a young blonde Kunoichi taken twenty miles from Rokku and heading west. According to the maps, there are four forts west of Rokku including the twin Forts Kei and Rui and their smaller sister forts Ni and Aoi. My informants have no idea which fort she was taken to, so the rescue team is going to need a really good tracker to pick up the trail."

Minato looked so unnerved and that worried Jiraiya. He had never seen his student act like this. He still didn't know how the girl is connected to Minato, but something told him she was closer to him than he originally thought. Blonde was such an unusual color to have if you weren't in the Yamanaka clan, but Minato having a daughter was ridiculous. Especially one as old as the girl sounded to be.

The Hokage sighed. "Fort Kei has given us problems before. Sakumo tried infiltrating it a few months back and it didn't go as planned."

Sakumo flinched slightly, but only Jiraiya caught it. Then he realized what the Hokage said. "Whoa, wait. Did you just say you had Sakumo try to infiltrate Fort Kei?"

Everyone in the room turned to him. Kakashi had tilted his head and was trying to figure out what the man was thinking. The Hokage nodded. "When we didn't get your report a couple of months back we had to use our other Intel and according to them Fort Kei was a key part in winning the war."

Jiraiya let out a loud laugh. "Seriously? Well, they told you wrong. Fort Kei was a potential key part in winning the war five months ago, but the shinobi there were being shipped to another fort deeper into Grass Country. If you sent Sakumo within the last three months, then all he would have found was a lot of shinobi. Most probably weren't even over Chunin level. My spies informed me that most of the Jounin had already been dispatched and they were waiting to send the Genin and Chunin."

Sakumo turned in disbelief towards Jiraiya. "Fort Kei wasn't as important as we thought it would be? If I would have succeeded then it wouldn't have put a dent into their forces or dented their campaign?"

Jiraiya shook his head. "They would have lost lives, but most of the shinobi at Fort Kei were Grass shinobi that had been captured and forced to serve Iwa. You would have actually hurt Konoha's campaign because if Fort Kei fell during the mobilization, Iwa would have no choice but to send their shinobi to the new fort in Grass Country immediately instead of having them stop at Fort Kei and her sister fort. Having a few thousand shinobi that close to Konoha isn't the best thing last time I checked."

The Third let out a sigh and looked towards Sakumo and Kakashi. "I had no idea, nobody did. I can't even begin to describe how much I want to make this right."

Kakashi shook his head and a small chuckle escaped his lips. "It's very fitting that the fort was useless to Konoha."

Sakumo smiled sadly at his son. They knew how close this insignificant fort and mission had come to leaving Kakashi an orphan. The Third began shuffling papers. "I wish all of this would have been known sooner. There was always the possibility that Fort Kei was useless, but I never imagined what the truth would be."

Jiraiya shrugged. "It's not like anything bad happened. I'm assuming Sakumo called off the mission from what he said earlier. So what's the problem?"

The Hokage sighed heavily. "There's a lot to the story that you don't know Jiraiya, and since it's apparent that our rescue team is going to have to get close to the fort, we'll have to tell you."

Jiraiya nodded. "The Fort now is mostly used as a practical giant prison, but that doesn't mean they took the girl there. Iwa did a lot of rearranging to convert Fort Kei. According to my informant it caused a pause in the mobilization, so most of the excess shinobi were sent to Fort Rui."

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

The first thing I noticed when I woke up was that my body didn't ache or hurt. I sluggishly sat up and moved my once broken arm before scanning my surroundings and seeing nothing out of the ordinary. I rotated my arm around before standing up and testing my leg muscles to see if they were going to hold me up. Lying on the floor did nothing for my back and legs. My stomach rumbled angrily at me and I groaned before looking at the food that had been sitting in the corner of the cell since I had arrived. There was no way I was going to trust it. The door clanged open and three Iwa Shinobi walked into the cell with the ropes and handcuffs.

I pushed away the hunger and looked at them with determination. I was getting out today. I waited until they were close before stomping on the foot of the one closest to me and in the flurry of chaos I managed to get to the cell door and step into the hallway. I turned quickly and slammed the cell door shut, locking the three shinobi into the cell. I waved at them before taking off in the opposite direction of where I knew the interrogation room was.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV** )

Tero couldn't help but smile at the girl's enthusiasm and determination. His newest client wasn't as much fun as she was. Naru was stubborn and had tried multiple times to escape. She almost made it this time, but she didn't take him into account. He swiftly performed the hand signs for a genjutsu and watched the effects on the girl.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

Okay, I felt like I had been running for hours and my legs were starting to hurt and burn with physical exertion. I shook off the feeling and kept running past empty cells and long corridors. I never saw an Iwa Shinobi or another prisoner and part of me knew something wasn't right about that. Surely the Iwa shinobi would have come looking for me. They wouldn't just let me go without a fight. I sighed before sliding to a stop and seeing an open door with light streaming from it into the darkened hallway.

My soul rejoiced and I felt like crying tears of happiness as I saw the first sign of freedom. I could already smell the musky scent of a forest and feel the early morning dew from the grass. I was almost home free and with a small smile I walked toward the light and waited for my eyes to adjust to the harshness of it. My heart dropped into my stomach and my once soaring spirit was shot down rather quickly. For in front of me was not my shot at freedom, but my chains. I had run right into the interrogation room and Tero was waiting for me with a sadistic grin on his face. I tried to back away but my back connected with solid bodies and without even looking up, I knew I was captured.

Tero walked closer and began clapping. "You almost got away, but it's amazing what genjutsu does to the body. I'm so glad you decided to join us because we have something very special planned for you today. Come or I'll re-break your arm."

He didn't scare me, but I knew I had no other choice and begrudgingly walked over to him. His fingers felt heavy on top of my shoulder as he led me to the door marked with a number two. He knocked and the door slid open and I was pushed in.

The first thing I noticed was the huge plate of food on the metal table. My body involuntarily traveled towards it before I stopped and turned to look at the man sitting in front of the plate. He had a round and open face. His oddly colored hair was pulled back from his face in a low ponytail and his large brown eyes seemed to both pin me in place and beckon me forward. The hair is what I kept going back to though. It wasn't exactly green, but it wasn't blue either. It was just odd.

He smiled and flashed a row of perfect teeth before motioning to the chair in front of him. "Please, come sit Naru."

A part of me wanted to do as he said, but another part told me to stay exactly where I was at and stay far away from him. He picked up a roll and showed it to me. My stomach protested my stillness and willed me to move forward and take the roll from him.

He blinked before breaking the roll in half. "I promise it's safe to eat. Here, pick anything off of this plate and I'll eat it to show you that it's safe."

I stepped forward slightly and swallowed the lump in my throat before pointing at the sushi on the plate. He nodded before picking one up and putting it into his mouth. "It's very good. Would you like to try it?"

His voice took on the same soothing tone Dad had used after my first kill and the same soothing tone Sakumo-sensei used whenever he spoke to Kakashi. I mistrusted it coming from his mouth, but I stepped forward and sat at the table with him. He gently pushed the plate in front of me and motioned me to begin eating. I couldn't resist temptation anymore and with a shaky hand began picking food off of the plate and shoveling it into my mouth. A part of me felt like an animal eating quickly with sticky fingers and dirty hands, but they weren't going to give me anything that could become a weapon and I was too hungry to even ask for disposable chopsticks.

He chuckled as he watched me eat before giving me a napkin. "Someone is obviously hungry. I'm sure you're used to getting three square meals a day plus whatever snack your little heart desires. Tell me Naru what's your favorite food? Maybe I can see about getting it for you while you're here."

I stopped eating and looked at him. There was no harm in telling him what my favorite food was, right? "Ichiraku Ramen."

I cleared my throat and ignored the pain. Apparently when whoever healed my body they didn't bother to heal my raw and aching throat. Talking hurt too much for my tastes, but I felt like talking to him.

"Ahh, sounds like a good place to eat. My dad used to take me to this dango place whenever I would train really hard."

I blinked at his little story. "My sensei takes me sometimes when none of us feel like cooking."

He nodded before grabbing another piece of sushi. "Really? That's a really nice thing to do. My sensei favored my other teammates more than me and I was usually left on my own, which may be why my dad was so insistent on making sure I ate dango with him."

My eyes softened at the downfallen look on his face and I felt this need to reach out to him and hug him, but I quickly remembered this man was the enemy and squashed those feelings. "I'm sorry."

He waved it off. "Its okay, you've never had to experience something like that I'm sure. You're such a pretty little girl."

He reached over and touched the shortened and jagged dirty locks that fell around my face. "Blonde is such an unusual color, did you take after your Mommy or Daddy?"

I was too busy eating to even care what he asked me. "My Daddy, hardly even look like my Mom."

He smiled and I felt myself drawn in by his soothing words and kind smile.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Shigure smiled. The girl was dropping her guard and he couldn't wait to see how much farther he could get her to drop it. Unknown to her, each piece of food held a small amount of a special drug that he had nicked off of a Suna shinobi many years before. It was a particular drug that inhibited the part of the brain that dealt with reasoning and decision making. She could refuse to answer the questions if she caught onto his game, but as long as he asked the questions in a way that didn't raise any red flags for her, she would never realize what she was saying. This little miracle drug was his secret weapon, along with his other techniques, but he liked to use the drug more because it was easier. Plus, it helped that he was able to gain her trust through the food by eating some of it himself. He had put only small amounts in the food. So while she would be affected by the drug because of the amount of food she consumed, he wouldn't be.

Shigure turned his attention back to the girl and passed her a cup of water. "You look exactly like your daddy? Including the blonde hair and blue eyes?"

Naru nodded. "Yeah, but he's tall. Not as tall as Sakumo-sensei though."

Shigure stopped and felt his heart pound with excitement. Sakumo wasn't a common name and the only man he knew of from Konoha with that name was Hatake Sakumo, the White Fang of Konoha. He watched the girl to see if she even noticed she had given him her sensei's name, but she was busy drinking down the water with her eyes closed as if she was savoring it. "Tell me Naru, what were you doing in Rokku?"

Naru's eyes shot open and Shigure cursed inwardly. He hadn't expected her to be so stubborn. "That's none of your business. I was on a mission and that's all you need to know."

Shigure nodded before making sure his smile was in place. It had been too soon to ask that question. The drug wasn't strong enough in her body yet, "Okay, I'm sorry I asked. Here have another cup of water."

He handed her another cup, this one spiked with even more of the drug and watched it disappear. He slightly wondered if there was a chance of her overdosing on it. "Naru, can you tell me what your hobbies are?"

Naru looked at him before speaking. "Why haven't you asked me about Konoha's plans yet? Or even about the mission? I think you're up to something."

Shigure's eyes widened slightly. "No, no, Naru. I'm simply trying to make small talk. Let's play a game, shall we?"

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

He wanted to play a game with me? I sighed and rubbed my head gently. It hurt to think and it was getting even more difficult to stop myself from saying whatever I was thinking out loud. I just wanted to sleep away my headache and he wanted to play a game. I heard my own voice agree and waited to find out what game we were going to play. I had always loved games and hoped this one wouldn't end up with me betraying my village.

I wasn't dumb. I may be having difficulty in reasoning what was a safe question and what wasn't, but I remembered everything Sensei had told me about T&I. I just wished I had remembered about the drugging sooner because by now I could feel the strong affects on my body and was losing control rapidly. "Yes, let's play."

I suddenly didn't feel well at all and the room was beginning to spin. I felt like I had just sold my soul to the devil.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Jiraiya shook his head in disbelief after hearing what had befallen Sakumo after his decision. "Are people in Konoha idiots?"

The Hokage couldn't stop his smile. "Jiraiya that's…."

"Hokage-sama."

The Hokage turned to see Rafu step into his office and Sakumo's eyes narrowed dangerously.

"I've returned from taking the rest of the team to the hospital and I'm ready to give my report."

The Hokage nodded. "Report."

Rafu bowed before reporting. "Nearly three days ago Team Rafu plus Uzu Naru were dispatched to an Iwa controlled warehouse outside of Rokku. The destruction of the warehouse was easily accomplished with Naru's demolition skills and we made it out without alerting anyone to our presence. We moved as quickly as we could, but Tenshi injured himself and we had no choice but to stop so he could be healed. Our stopping allowed an Iwa patrol to catch up with us and take us down. They took Naru and being as injured as we were, we couldn't go after her."

Minato stood and turned to Rafu. "Why did they only take Naru? Did you sell her out too? Messing with Sakumo wasn't enough?" Sakumo stood up and grabbed Minato's shoulder, holding him back from Rafu.

Kakashi sat dejectedly in his chair before turning worried eyes to Rafu. "Rafu-san, you tried to protect her right?" Sakumo and Minato turned to look at Kakashi, as did the others in the room. "You wouldn't let your hatred for my father blind you towards her would you?"

Rafu's breath hitched as he looked into Kakashi's eyes, but he didn't see Kakashi sitting there. He saw Nozomi and he saw Nozomi's disgust. "I did try Kakashi, I really did."

Kakashi didn't acknowledge what he said, only turned back to the Hokage and stared straight ahead. His hands were shaking. Rafu turned to Minato. The man was angry and he was only going to get angrier at what Rafu had to tell him next. "I don't know why they took Naru, but I think it might have been something I said. Believe me when I say I had no idea the Iwa patrol was so close when I said this."

Sakumo's eyes narrowed once again. "What did you say Rafu?"

Rafu's eyes couldn't meet any of the others as he spoke. "I told her that she could easily pass as Minato's daughter since they look so similar."

Rafu never saw Minato coming. All he felt was the fist that met with his jaw and he knew he deserved it.

"Enough! Rafu, thank you for the report, go home and rest."

Straightening up Rafu nodded and quickly left the room.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I sighed as I watched Rafu leave the room. His little slip of the tongue could have been what got Naru captured. "Minato-sensei, I don't think you can hide the truth anymore."

I watched as Jiraiya's eyes widened before looking towards Sensei. "Don't tell me the girl is your daughter?"

Minato-sensei nodded. "She's mine. She just appeared a few months ago and has been here ever since."

"Didn't I teach you how to prevent stuff like that from happening? I figured out of all the lessons I taught you, the one about protection would be the one you'd remember the most!"

Minato-sensei hissed to Jiraiya. "Your lessons? You handed me a pack of con…"

I blinked as Dad's hands covered my ears and I was effectively cut off from their conversation. I scowled up at him and he winked before talking to Sensei and Jiraiya. Sensei blushed red before mumbling something I couldn't hear. It made me really wish I could read lips. Dad released my ears and the Hokage called our attention back to the matter at hand.

"We don't have the time for you two to be carrying on like that. We've already lost time since we had to wait for Rafu's report, but if they think she's Minato's daughter then we just might be in luck."

Dad sighed heavily. "So you're saying they'll most likely keep her alive because they have something over Minato? The same man who has been causing them so many problems lately. I bet the man who captured her danced with glee at the revelation."

I tuned out their conversation. I knew it was probably important and I should've been listening, but I couldn't force myself to listen to their planning. I remembered Iwa and I remembered the torture techniques they used. Some of the most horrible techniques out there had come straight from the belly of Iwa. I finally shook those thoughts away and tried to pay attention to the older men in the room as the Hokage was now speaking.

"I want to send a rescue team out to find her and with the information from Jiraiya we should save some searching time."

Minato-sensei's surprisingly steady voice asked, "Who is leading the rescue team?"

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

The entire room was quiet. Minato's heart was just about ready to burst from his own personal anger and anxiety. His daughter was in the filthy hands of the enemy. He didn't know what they were doing to her and he didn't want to even think about it. Many Kunoichi had been known to get captured and spend the entirety of their time being humiliated and raped day after day. Minato was so angry and so scared about what they were doing to his daughter. He had only just discovered her. He couldn't and didn't want to lose her so soon.

They hadn't had time to actually get to know each other and if she died then that was a missed opportunity. Minato closed his eyes and lowered his head. If she did die without getting to know each other, then it was his fault. He had been too worried about missions and Kushina to seriously give Naru a chance to know him. He hadn't told her about her grandparents, her family history or his adventures with his sensei. He hadn't told her anything. He had told Kakashi more about his life than he told Naru and that knowledge was festering inside his heart and making him sick.

The Hokage shuffled more papers on his desk before looking at the shinobi in front of him. He knew exactly who he wanted to lead this mission. "Sakumo, you have a choice. I have two missions for you. One is the assassination of Chiyo of Sand's son and daughter-in-law and the other is the rescue of Uzu Naru. Which one do you want?"

Sakumo smirked. "Isn't a hard choice there, I want the rescue mission."

The Hokage smiled. "You're going to need a four man team altogether. Who do you choose?"

Minato and Kakashi both looked towards Sakumo, both silently daring him not to say their names. Sakumo looked Minato in the eye before moving to Kakashi. He knew he wasn't going to get away without saying both of their names.

Kakashi finally broke his silence. "I want to go."

Jiraiya snorted. "Brat, this isn't a regular mission. It's a rescue, which means..."

"I know what it means. I'm not four or a rookie Genin. She's my friend and I want to go find her and bring her home."

Kakashi looked into his father's eyes and Sakumo sighed before nodding. "I've decided the team will be Kushina, Minato and Kakashi."

Jiraiya sighed before looking Kakashi over once more. "It can't be helped I guess. Good luck all of you."

The Third nodded. "I approve. Go get ready, you leave tomorrow morning."

Minato blinked. "Why not now?"

Sakumo turned to Minato and smiled sadly. "We have to get maps and plans together before we go running off to the wrong fort. I'd hate for us to miss her because we went to Fort Rui instead of Fort Ni. We're going to have to start at the last place she was seen so we can see if we can pick up her trail."

Sakumo grabbed Minato's arm. "Don't worry, we'll get her back."

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

Dad nodded towards the Hokage and told Sensei to get Kushina packed and bring her to the house. I followed after Dad, wondering how Sensei was going to explain this to Kushina. Would he finally tell her about Naru?

"Come on Kakashi, we've got to hurry."

I nodded and we raced back to the house. Once there Dad started immediately getting things together and I followed him upstairs. "Dad what do I need to pack?"

He dragged his pack out from under the bed and turned to me. "Pack light. We're going to move fast and can't be weighed down too much. Make sure you bring _Hanshou_ too."

I nodded and went into my bedroom to pack. We wouldn't have time to stop and change clothes, but I stuffed an extra set of clothes in my pack before packing extra weapons. I looked around the room before my eyes settled on the conductors sitting innocently on the shelf. I picked them up and stowed them into the pack. I hurriedly pulled out another box from underneath my bed that held exploding tags and flash bangs. I checked over my bag before going into the kitchen and opening the lower cabinet to grab some ration bars. I hated the cardboard tasting things, but we wouldn't have a lot of time for real food.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Minato raced home and slammed the door open startling Kushina into almost dropping the glass of water she had in her hand. His mind was racing and his heart pumping as he began tearing through the house only slowing down to yell one word at Kushina. "Pack!"

Kushina raised an eyebrow after her boyfriend in a curious manner before watching him hastily stuff items into his pack. She sighed before yelling. "What is going on?"

He froze for a second before blinking and looking at her. "Why aren't you packing?"

She rolled her eyes. "Why do I need to pack?"

Minato stopped completely. "We have a rescue mission and we head out in the morning."

Kushina nodded. "Okay, so if we head out in the morning, why do I have to break my neck to pack right this second?"

"Naru was captured by Iwa and we've got to rescue her. We're meeting Kakashi and Sakumo at their house to go over the plans and maps."

Kushina nodded before picking up her discarded pack by the door. She quietly shuffled through her supplies before watching Minato out of the corner of her eye. She had never seen him more shaken up and nervous, it was almost like he knew something she didn't. Never one to keep her questions to herself, she simply asked what he was hiding from her. "Okay Minato, what's wrong with you? I know this girl is something special to you and the others, but why are you acting like a rookie Genin on his first mission?"

Minato opened his mouth before shutting it and turning away. "I'll explain later Kushina, but for now we've got to…"

"We haven't got to do anything except tell me what this girl is to you. Who is she Minato?"

Minato dropped his pack before closing his eyes and wishing the truth didn't have to come out like it did. "She's my daughter Kushina. Uzu Naru is my biological daughter."

The look on Kushina's face was one of complete shock before morphing into anger. "I'll see you at Sakumo's house."

She turned and shouldered her pack before slamming the door as she walked out. Minato watched her go because he couldn't find the strength to chase her. All of his waiting and planning had been in vain. He sighed dejectedly before finishing his packing and walking out the front door.

Kakashi and Sakumo had their stuff already downstairs and packed by the time Kushina arrived. The walk over had cooled her off some, but she was still ticked off at Minato. She wasn't mad that he had a daughter. In fact, it kind of excited her. She was mad because he had kept this from her. Did he really think that low of her to keep something like his own daughter away from her? He hadn't respected her enough to share this secret with her and that hurt more than anything. They had promised each other a long time ago they would never keep secrets from each other and he broke that promise.

She didn't know if she could trust him anymore and it made her wonder how many other secrets he was keeping from her. Kakashi came down the stairs, took one look at Kushina and sighed. "I'm assuming that Sensei told you about Naru's relationship and you didn't take it too well."

Kushina rolled her eyes before ruffling Kakashi's hair. "You're too observant for your own good kid. How long have you known? And if Minato told you, then I'm killing him."

Kakashi eye-smiled at her. "Naru told me herself. She didn't want to cause any trouble in Minato-sensei's life and wasn't going to tell him. But he was being nosy and found out the truth. He really did try to tell you before now. It just never worked out right."

Kushina closed her eyes. "That night with the dinner. He was trying to tell me then. He's tried before too, but sometimes your Sensei can be a big baby. He shouldn't have kept this from me."

Sakumo came down the stairs. He had overheard the conversation and waited before coming down. "I would agree, but he was worried about how you'd take it."

Kushina's green eyes flashed dangerously. "He knows me, or at least should have known me well enough to know that I don't care what he did in his past. That's behind us and there's no sense in dwelling on what happened when the present is much more rewarding."

Sakumo nodded in agreement before inviting Kushina to sit down in the kitchen while they waited for Minato.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

Well, Sensei screwed up big time. Kushina was ticked and it really was his fault. She's a whole lot more understanding than her personality suggests. I sighed before watching out the window for him and finally he trudged up the walkway and into the house. His eyes lingered on Kushina before turning to dad. "Well, let's get started."

I saw the disbelief in dad's eyes and the way he was motioning to Kushina, almost like he wanted those two to make up before we started so it wouldn't hinder the mission. Sensei looked away from dad and became suddenly curious in the patterns in the hardwood floors.

Dad sighed before crossing his arms across his chest. "Okay, before we get started I need to know that you two can work together and put this behind you."

Kushina snorted. "I'm a shinobi Sakumo, and I know how to keep work and home separate. We haven't got much time. Let's get started so we can bring that little girl home."

Minato nodded in agreement and dad grinned at both of them before pulling out maps from his pack and setting them on the table. We all crowded around the table and began looking at the lines and formations that made up the place we were going to infiltrate.

Dad began by pointing to Rokku and moving his finger to the west slightly. "Naru was last spotted twenty miles from Rokku and heading west." Dad then moved his finger south slightly. "We can assume that she was somewhere in this area when she was captured, but since we know the last place spotted, we should be able to easily pick up the trail. We'll start at the point last seen and work our way west. The forts are pretty close to each other and we'll know if she's there."

We nodded at Dad and he turned to me. "Bring me _Hanshou_ Kakashi."

I nodded and walked over to my pack where _Hanshou_ was placed and brought back to him. He took it from my hand and turned it over. "Kakashi and Naru's katanas were forged together and have some very favorable characteristics. If the katana accepts their wielders, then a small amount of the wielder's chakra will be absorbed into the katana. This doesn't seem like anything special, but since the two katanas are identical they can attract one another, kind of like a divining rod. The katanas also absorb the chakra of the other katana when they come in contact with each other, which is how the katanas are able to locate each other. The closer Kakashi's katana gets to Naru's, the closer we are to Naru."

I blinked. "But they wouldn't let her keep her sword while in captivity. What if they split her and the _Tsukiakari_ up?"

Dad looked at me before handing me back _Hanshou._ "Well then, we'd get her katana and have something to give her whenever we find her. I'm sure Naru wouldn't want us to lose _Tsukiakari_ if we had the opportunity to find it."

I nodded and Sensei pointed toward the four squares on the map, the four forts. "They're almost exactly lined up together."

Dad nodded. "This is pretty much the border of Iwa. So they try to keep forts located every thirty or so miles so they can make sure enemies don't infiltrate. It's been fairly unsuccessful for them though, which I think that's why they're moving their forts into Kusagakure and closer to Konoha. The sooner the war is over for them, the greater a chance they will win. They know they out number us in shinobi and they're trying to bombard us with their numbers."

Everyone was quiet as we continued planning over the maps. It would all depend on where the trail led, but it wouldn't hurt to be prepared for any possible situation and that included Fort Kei. I turned to look into dad's eyes and saw the despair at facing Fort Kei again. He caught my stare and smiled. I knew at that moment that if it came down to us having to go to Fort Kei he would burn it to the ground.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

"Okay, Naru the game we are going to play is really fun and I know you'll love it."

Naru nodded slightly. The poor girl looked like it hurt to keep her eyes open. Shigure wondered if that was an effect from the drug since he had used so much.

"Now Naru, I'm going to ask you a couple of questions and I need you to tell me the truth. If I catch you lying, then you lose the game. Okay, question one. Are you a Kunoichi?"

Naru rubbed her head before nodding.

"No Naru, I need actual words."

"O-okay y-yes. I'm a Kunoichi."

Shigure nodded in happiness. "Good girl, what's your rank?"

A whimper escaped Naru's throat. "Chunin."

Shigure whistled, impressed with her rank. "That's a really good rank for someone your age. Tell me Naru, do you specialize in something?"

Naru blinked and swayed in her chair. Shigure leaned forward and steadied her. "W-what do you mean? I can't think straight."

Shigure sighed before plastering his smile on his face. "Like some shinobi specialize in genjutsu and some in taijutsu. What do you specialize in?"

Naru opened her bloodshot blue eyes. "Demolition. I blow things up."

A lump formed in Shigure's throat. "You blow things up? Did you blow up the warehouse in Rokku?"

Naru's eyes began to roll into the back of her head and she slumped forward. Shigure quickly grabbed her and lowered his mouth to her ear. "Tell me."

Naru moaned. "Yes."

Shigure let go and allowed her head to hit the metal table with a bang. She slid off the table and cracked her head against the hard floor, a stream of blood formed from the wound on her head.

Shigure walked out and looked towards Tero. "I got the information, but a medical ninja needs to go see about her. I think I overdosed her and she busted her head when she hit the floor. So she's either going to die from blood loss or her overdose symptoms."

Tero nodded and whistled for a medical ninja. The Kunoichi rolled her eyes at the two men before walking into the room and healing the girl. She returned from the room before looking at them. "She's still alive, but her stomach has to be pumped or the drug will keep eating at her. Her head wound will mend nicely and might not leave a scar if she's lucky."

Tero rolled his eyes. "It's not like she's going to be alive much longer anyway. Vanity isn't something she has to worry about."

The Kunoichi shrugged and walked out of the room as Tero and Shigure followed behind. They needed to report to the higher ups and let them know how the interrogation went. Tero stopped outside the T&I room and informed the other Kunoichi on duty to make sure the girl was returned to her cell and remind the men taking her back that she was not to be touched. She nodded and disappeared into the room to get the girl.

Shigure sat down in front of his superiors and informed them of everything he had found out. He never saw the dark figure just outside the door, listening to everything he said. The figured stepped out of the shadows to reveal Yuuma, his eyes burning with hatred for the little girl that had destroyed the warehouse and his family.

The Hokage sighed as he watched Jiraiya sit in front of him and practically twiddle his thumbs. "Jiraiya, I have a mission for you. Once Naru gets back to Konoha she's going to need a medic ninja. I want you to go get Tsunade and bring her back. I'm sure she'll come back since Naru is Minato's daughter."

Jiraiya nodded before leaving the office and heading toward Wave, the last place Tsunade had been spotted.

The group disbanded for the night, Minato opting to sleep in Naru's room and Kushina taking the guest room. They still weren't talking to each other, mostly because they were too stubborn to even try.

Kakashi rolled his eyes after them before heading upstairs and getting ready for bed. He placed his forehead protector on the shelf and stared at it from across the room, the leaf etched into the metal surface stood out against the dark blue cloth surrounding it.

He couldn't help but wonder if they would ever see Naru again and that made him feel sick. He never doubted himself, but knew he couldn't save the future alone; he needed Naru. He sighed before resting his head comfortably on his pillow. Naru had to be okay because the future depended on it. A knock interrupted his thoughts and the door opened to reveal his tired looking father. "Dad?"

Sakumo smiled. "Lay back down Kakashi, I just wanted to come talk to you."

Kakashi lay back down and turned on his side while Sakumo pulled the covers over his son's small body. Sakumo sighed before running a hand through his hair. "When we get to the fort there is a great chance she's going to be dead or seriously injured. If I tell you to leave, you leave. Do you understand Kakashi?"

Kakashi looked up and nodded. "You think she's still alive right?"

Sakumo tried to smile but couldn't make it look sincere. "I believe she's a fighter and wouldn't just die. We're going to find her and bring her back."

Kakashi nodded and rolled back onto his back. "Thanks Dad."

Sakumo blinked. "For what?"

"For letting me go with the team. I'll keep up and everything."

Sakumo ruffled Kakashi's hair. "I would have been a hypocrite if I didn't let you go. I know you'll keep up, but one sign of exhaustion and we're going to take a break, so no arguing. We can't have you or anyone else injured because we're going to need everyone to get to her."

Kakashi nodded and closed his eyes. Sakumo leaned down and placed a kiss on his forehead. "Sleep Ka-chan, we've got a long way to go."

Shigure sighed as he watched Tero pace in front of the girl's cell. Their superiors decided they should combine their forces and see if the girl knew anything else. Shigure really hadn't gotten to finish with her the other day because she passed out, but he did get more information out of her than Tero did. "Well, what's the plan for today?"

Tero smiled. "She goes to door number three."

Shigure rolled his eyes and shifted his feet. "What's so great about door number three?"

Tero's face lit up like a child on Christmas Day when he told Shigure his plans for the next door. "My dear interrogator, we're going to put her into a genjutsu room."

Shigure nodded. "So? We've used more genjutsu on her than on most. I wouldn't be surprised if she didn't realize it before you even put her in there."

Tero shook his head. "The girl has almost no aptitude for genjutsu, which is obvious by how she's reacting to them. Chakra or not, she should know there was a genjutsu being placed on her and she never feels it until too late. The one I've got planned for her is especially fun. It acts on her fears and goes into the brain to find the worst memory she has and replays it for her. Beautiful little technique and causes the most horrific nightmares, making the person relive their most horrible moments over and over again. It usually drives the victims insane because their dreams are laced with their memories and they refuse to sleep. We'll get tons of information out of her once she's tired enough to not notice what she's saying."

Shigure sighed. "I still don't see why they won't let me drug her again."

"You almost killed her and then we'd be stuck with a dead body and no information."

Shigure accepted that explanation before walking into the T&I room. They had to start setting room number three up so the captive could be transported.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I could hear my own whimper bounce off of the stone walls around me and I knew I was back in my own cell. I gently opened one eye before quickly closing it when I felt my head swim. I brought my hands up to cover my head and will the pounding to go away. I felt like I had been hit with a couple of chakra filled punches and thrown over the side of a cliff. I hadn't felt this horrible in a long time and something told me it was only going to get worse. I sighed and I managed to get into a sitting position with my eyes still tightly closed. I figured if I could keep my eyes closed then I wouldn't be tempted to vomit, which seemed to be my body's goal at the moment.

I swallowed back down the bile that had risen to my throat and blindly reached for the wet patch on the floor to indicate where the water leak was. I got right underneath it and let the water dripped onto my nose before opening my mouth and getting a tiny drink. I wasn't really thirsty, but the water felt really good sliding down my raw and aching throat.

I finally braved the pain and opened my eyes to see the same dingy cell that I had woken up in since I had been in captivity. I leaned my head against the stone wall and mentally scolded myself for trusting the man with the food. He had gotten me and played to my weaknesses. I admired him for that because it was effective, but at the same time feared what it would mean for the rest of my time here. I spent a lot of time alone and had time to actually think about life and my choice in life.

I found myself going back to my 'happy place' and rethinking over Sensei's lessons. I also analyzed my captors. Tero was hard and unforgiving. He loved to cause pain and usually tended to smile brighter whenever I screamed louder, but he never resorted to rape tactics. I was so sure after the first man that he would come back and finish what he started, but never did he touch me in a way that made my skin crawl and the hairs stand on the back of my neck.

Shigure was still a mystery to me. He seemed kind, but really he was worse than Tero because his whole being was a lie. I seriously doubted if even he knew who he was anymore. He spent his entire life molding himself into different people and I think he lost himself somewhere along the way. It seems silly for me to analyze my captors, but if I didn't do something I was going to go crazy sitting in the darkness of my cell simply waiting for another round with one of them.

I thought a lot about the first training session I had with Sakumo-sensei and the question of chakra. I had gone what seemed to be a long time without chakra and I knew just how important chakra was to not just the shinobi but to the body itself.

The cell door banged open and interrupted my thoughts once more. I didn't have the strength or the energy to even try anything this time and the other shinobi weren't taking any chances. The one closest to me pulled out a kunai and held it to my throat, silently daring me to move so he could end it. I gulped and allowed them to stand me on my feet and place the handcuffs on my abused wrists. I followed behind them and into the T&I room, which I was becoming very acquainted with.

They released me to Tero and Shigure, who both grabbed an arm and led me to the door marked number three. They pushed the door open and shoved me hard into the darkness. I could feel a pulse of chakra and slowly white dots danced in front of my eyes before everything turned red.

I heard my own scream echo off of the walls.

* * *

 _(genjutsu sequence)_

" _Fifteen-years-old and already working harder than most thirty-year-olds."_

 _Naru laughed with Tsunade as she handed in the mission report from her and Kakashi's latest mission. "Tell me Naru, how did Kakashi manage to sprain his ankle?"_

 _Naru laughed again. "There was this branch in the middle of the road and either he didn't see it or he was too busy staring at our client, which worries me because the client was male and not very attractive."_

 _Tsunade roared with laughter. "You've come a long way brat, a very long way from the annoying little tomboy that used to run around here screeching about wanting to be Hokage."_

 _Naru blushed slightly before rolling her eyes. "Well, it's better than being a big-boobed alcoholic."_

 _Tsunade growled teasingly at Naru before handing her another scroll. "You better be glad I'm so forgiving brat or this would go to the next team. It's a mission to the Land of Waves. You remember Tazuna the bridge builder right?"_

 _Naru smiled brightly. "Of course, how could I forget them? That was Team 7's first C-ranked mission. They're not in any trouble are they?"_

 _Tsunade shook her head. "No and this is only a C-ranked mission. They need someone to help make repairs on the 'Great Naru Bridge' and asked for a team. I figured since you knew them so well that you'd like to go and take a small break before I try to run you back into the ground with missions."_

 _Naru nodded enthusiastically. "When do I leave?"_

" _Well, you leave today and Kakashi will meet up with you in a few days."_

 _Naru's once bright face fell. "Does he have to come?"_

 _Tsunade nodded. "You two are partners, so of course he has to come."_

 _Naru turned to hide her downfallen face from Tsunade. "We're not partners Tsunade. He doesn't accept me as one and I'm never going to be good enough to replace Gai. I'm simply back to taking orders from him."_

 _Tsunade sighed and rubbed her eyes. "Naru, I know Kakashi's a little difficult to understand sometimes, but he means well. He'll accept you as a partner in his own time and fashion and he'll do it when you least expect it. Don't worry and just try to charm him like you do everyone else. Think of it as a challenge and you'll have the solution in no time."_

 _Naru smiled slightly before adjusting the scroll in her hand and walking out the door to her apartment so she could get ready to leave for Wave. Once at her apartment she looked at the scroll with the signed signature from Tazuna and couldn't wait to see her old friends._

 _The journey to Wave wasn't as long as she remembered it being the first time. She figured a lot of that had to do with the fact she was traveling alone and learned long ago the fastest way to travel for a shinobi. She arrived in the sleepy little town and marveled at the changes. No longer were people starving in the streets or stealing from the vendors. Everyone seemed to have their own personal bubble of happiness and Naru couldn't help but feel excited she had helped bring about that happiness. She could even see more little children running around. Their chances of survival were greater now and they seemed to liven the town up. Naru checked on the bridge and found it odd that she couldn't find anything wrong with it. It looked the same as it did three years ago._

 _Naru made her way up the hill that led to Tazuna and Tsunami's house and couldn't wait to see how much Inari had grown since the last time she had seen him. Her heart felt ready to burst. Seeing her friends after such a long time was an amazing feeling that could only be compared to finally understanding a complex jutsu. The light feeling she got whenever she thought of her precious people and the fierce protection she wanted to give all of them. As she got closer to the house she noticed the single light in the front room and raced to the door before knocking to let them know she was there._

 _The door opened to reveal a very tired looking Tsunami. Her eyes seemed out of focus as she crookedly smiled at Naru. "Welcome back Naru, we've been waiting for you."_

 _Naru ignored the chill that raced down her spine and headed into the house. "I'm very happy to be back. Where are Inari and Tazuna?"_

 _Tsunami looked a little lost before answering. "Oh, they're around somewhere. I'm sure they can't wait to see you though, you remember where the bedroom is right?"_

 _Naru looked after the woman as she left before shaking her head and walking up the stairs. She didn't remember Tsunami being so strange. She found Inari sitting in the middle of the dark hallway with his head in his hands. "Inari? Are you okay?"_

 _The boy looked up at her before smiling. "Of course! Why wouldn't I be?"_

 _Naru shrugged her shoulders. "Your mom just seems a little off tonight. What's wrong with her?"_

 _Inari shrugged before looking confused. "I don't know."_

 _Naru blinked before rolling her eyes. "This isn't some joke Inari. Why is everyone so weird in this house?"_

 _Inari just shrugged his shoulders and placed his face back into his hands. As Naru walked away she faintly heard the sound of laughter following her down the hall. The darkened hall made it hard for Naru to navigate and yet again she ran into a figure. She looked up and saw it was the same face as Tazuna. The man took one look at her and fell over clutching his stomach, Naru reached over to help him only to be pushed away._

 _Naru stood up and placed her hands on her hips, a habit she had gotten from Iruka, and scolded the man for trying to hide his sickness from her and Tsunami. She took the sick man and placed him into his bed before heading to her room and lying down for the night. She didn't dwell on the strange behaviors of the family and chalked it all up to exhaustion on her part and theirs. Keeping the bridge open and building more homes for the increasing population of residents in town must have taken a toll on the hardworking family._

 _Naru closed her eyes and dreaded tomorrow. Not because of the strange behaviors surrounding her, but because her so called partner was going to show up and still not acknowledge her as an equal._

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I stretched before climbing out of bed and getting ready for the rescue mission to save Naru, but my mind wasn't clear. I kept remembering the dreams from last night, the ones that replayed Naru's capture by Akatsuki and how similar but different both situations were.

I was ashamed of my actions before her capture by Akatsuki, but I couldn't do anything about it now. The only thing I could do was make sure I didn't ignore her like that ever again. I sighed and waited in the living room for the others to finish getting ready. The sun wasn't even up, but we needed to go soon.

* * *

 **(Memory Sequence)**

 **Kakashi sighed in annoyance as Tsunade checked over his sprain by prodding the tender flesh harshly before making her hands glow with healing chakra. "Brat, why do you treat her like that? She's not twelve anymore and deserves to be recognized as your partner."**

 **Kakashi turned away from Tsunade only to snap back to attention as she slapped the swollen ankle. He hissed a couple of curse words underneath his breath and something that sounded suspiciously like 'old hag.'**

" **Hokage-sama, I know she's a worthy partner, but this stuff takes time. I was with Gai for nearly fifteen years."**

 **Tsunade nodded in sympathy before rolling her eyes. "It's not like you and Gai had some romantic relationship going on."**

 **Kakashi's face twisted into one of disgust, him and Gai together in that way was something he really didn't want to think about. "He was my friend, Tsunade-sama, and I don't want Naru to get too close or she'll get hurt."**

 **Tsunade shook her head. "Obviously you don't realize that she's already been hurt because you refuse to see her as an equal and treat her as a child. Open your eyes Kakashi. She's a young woman, a beautiful young woman that needs your approval. Why don't you give it to her?"**

 **Kakashi sighed once more before hopping off of the hospital bed. "Where is she?"**

" **I sent her on a mission to Wave. She's waiting for you to arrive within the next day or two."**

 **Kakashi did a double take. "You sent her alone to Wave with Akatsuki still on the prowl for her?"**

" **Calm down Hatake, she's fine. The last place Akatsuki was spotted was around Iwa, so she's far from their clutches. Plus, Tazuna wouldn't have requested her if there was any danger."**

" **He requested her?"**

 **Tsunade nodded before laughing. "Yeah and I told the brat that I was just being nice. Tazuna sounded really excited about having her back in Wave, so I just agreed and let her go."**

 **A shinobi raced into the room and saluted to the Hokage before telling her the news. "Ma'am, the Akatsuki was spotted near Wave."**

 **Kakashi heard those words and quickly left out the window towards Wave. He knew it was a race against time as he pushed his body and chakra to the limits, but he was determined to get his student. No, not his student, his partner.**

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

"Kakashi?"

I blinked before looking at Minato-sensei. He was waving his hand in front of my face. "Are you okay?"

I blushed behind my mask before nodding my head. "I was just thinking."

He nodded and watched as Kushina walked down the stairs. She looked over him and out the window. Dad walked down the stairs after her and made sure all of the maps were packed away and everyone had the right supplies.

"Let's head out."

I nodded and shouldered my pack and placed _Hanshou_ on my back. We walked to the village gates and waited as they opened for us. Dad took the lead and I stayed in the middle with Kushina. Sensei stuck to the back. Dad gave the signal and we were off, taking to the trees and barreling towards wherever Naru was at. I looked back before facing forward and silently pleaded in my mind for Naru to hold on.

We were coming as fast as we could.

* * *

 **(Memory Sequence)**

 **Kakashi raced through the trees and knocked branches out of his way as he hopped from tree to tree. He didn't stop for anything, even when his healed ankle started to protest. He fought through the pain and ignored everything around him.**

 **His mind focused solely on getting Naru and making sure the Akatsuki didn't touch her.**

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Tero and Shigure played cards outside of the door marked number three. They could hear the whimpers and cries from Naru and wondered exactly what she was remembering. Shigure finished off a sandwich before offering the last three to Tero. The man turned them down before picking up the plate and throwing the sandwiches to his pets in door one. He usually kept them regularly fed and Naru was just lucky they had eaten before he threw her in there or they would have eaten her.

"Got a three?"

Tero looked at Shigure and shook his head. "Go fish."

* * *

 _(genjutsu sequence)_

 _Naru woke up the next morning and popped her back before heading downstairs and seeing what the family was up to. She entered the dining room to see all three members of the family sitting quietly and waiting for her. Tsunami was gently stirring a huge bowl full of ramen while Inari was vigorously scratching at his chest._

 _Tsunami smiled before offering Naru a bowl of the ramen. "It's very good. I made it especially for you using a very special recipe."_

 _The warning bells went off again in Naru's mind and she could swear she heard Kyuubi growling in her mind, but she trusted them. Friends didn't try to kill their friends did they? Kyuubi's voice filled her head before telling her that friends like Sasuke did. Naru flinched before taking a bite out of the ramen. She smacked her lips when she tasted the wonderful noodles and broth. There was just a hint of something in the ramen that she couldn't quiet put her finger on, but it was minty._

 _She slurped the broth happily before turning strangely drowsy eyes onto Tazuna. The man had gone strangely quiet and still. Naru reached across the low table and touched his arm. He fell over and began twitching. Naru's eyes widened as she began shouting to Inari and Tsunami. "Something's wrong! You've got to help him!"_

 _Tsunami began to laugh uncontrollably as did Inari. Naru stood up and backed against the wall, suddenly not liking the way they were looking at her. She could feel every cell in her body yelling at her to run, just like they had done since she met Tsunami on the front porch._

 _Inari fell over on his side, laughing and screaming at the same time, while Tsunami's head feel backwards at an impossible angle. Her smile red and bloody as blood cascaded out of her lips and into her hair. Naru backed away along the wall and wished she was having some terrible nightmare. She finally found her feet and began running, away from the house of horrors and straight to Konoha. Naru ran exactly ten feet before colliding with a solid figure._

 _She looked up into red Sharingan eyes and realized exactly what was going on. She whispered one thing before falling unconscious. "Akatsuki."_

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

We ended up breaking about midday. We had just passed over Fire Nation borders and were getting closer to Iwa borders. We were moving fast but it was a pace I could keep up with, so I had no problems. I watched as dad quickly scanned me with his eyes before seeming satisfied and sitting down to rest. Sensei sat away from Kushina and fiddled with a rock on the ground. I saw Kushina scan the perimeter before sitting down.

I smiled. Dad had already done that or he wouldn't have let us stop, but it never hurt to be extra careful. I sighed and leaned against the tree trunk. We still had a long way to go before we got to the last place Naru was seen and I was getting restless. I couldn't stop myself from remembering the other timeline and the woes I faced there.

* * *

 **(Memory Sequence)**

 **Kakashi finally made it to Wave and raced through the streets. If she was at that house then he was going to get down on his knees and beg her to be his partner. He would accept her as a young adult and not see her as the child she once was. He promised himself he would, if she was at the house.**

 **The exact moment Kakashi stepped into the clearing surrounding the house, he knew Naru wasn't going to be in the house or anywhere near it.**

 **The air stank of decay and old blood. His heart pounded in his ears as he walked forward into the house. He found the decaying bodies of Tazuna, Tsunami and Inari surrounding the kitchen table. He turned away and walked outside for fresh air. He returned to the house and began examining the bodies before growling in disgust. The bodies had been used as puppets to do the puppeteer's will. Small and almost invisible chakra strings kept the three inhabitants of the house alive while someone controlled them from afar.**

 **Kakashi punched the closest wall before cooling off and beginning the hand signs for a Katon jutsu. They deserved a proper burial, but he didn't have the time to give them one. He gave them a warrior's pyre instead and watched as the house burned to the ground.**

 **Afterwards he summoned his ninken and soon they had the scent of Uchiha Itachi and Sasori of the Red Sand. Kakashi shook his head. Sasori was a puppeteer and was most likely the one that constructed the trap. As Kakashi took off after his ninken his head was swarming with thoughts. The bodies had been dead a long time, which meant Tazuna hadn't sent the signed letter to Tsunade.**

 **Kakashi groaned. The Sharingan could copy signatures and if Itachi was in the area then he had used his Sharingan to send the letter to Konoha.**

 **The last thought stood out the most to Kakashi. They had this planned the entire time. Naru had practically walked right into their trap.**

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

"Let's head out again."

Everybody got up and took once more to the trees. The only thing left behind was the slightly warm spots were we had sat. Dad picked up the pace, making all of us pump chakra into our feet to match him. At this rate I didn't know if my stamina would last.

* * *

 _(genjutsu sequence)_

 _Naru's head pounded and something held her arms tightly against her body. A wet, yet warm liquid ran down her cheek and onto her throat. She moaned gently before opening her eyes and seeing a hand with a tongue in front of her face. She tried backing away, only to find herself tied tightly to a table. The blonde haired man laughed before backing away from her and looking towards the dark shadow that was the leader. He spoke to the people around her, but she couldn't hear what they were saying._

 _The dark shadow disappeared and with him left a couple of the other shadows in the room. Itachi walked closer and smirked at her. "You've grown since the last time I saw you."_

 _Naru snarled. "Murderer, you're the reason my best friend left!"_

 _Itachi looked sad before smirking again. "And here I though he left because he was weak and stupid."_

 _Naru snarled again and tried to attack. "What did you do with the real Tsunami, Tazuna and Inari?"_

 _Itachi laughed. "You see my dear little kitsune, we have been searching for you for a very long time and finally decided that we were going to make you come to us. We've been researching and discovered your connection with Wave and the family that lived there. It only took a few well placed kunai to kill them. They never saw it coming and right before they died Sasori placed chakra strings into them to make them his own little puppets. I could be funny and say they were called zombie puppets, but it's not worth the time. We then simply sent a signed letter for a fake mission and you fell into our hands. We should have thought of this a long time ago."_

 _Itachi walked away. "Oh, and they've been dead for a month so they're most likely decayed by now."_

 _Itachi left her to mourn over the first family outside of Konoha to accept her and become her friends. She mourned for the loss of her precious people and couldn't help but wonder how many more would die for her._

 _For two days Naru was left in the dark. All she could see was the gradual glow of chakra being pushed into a median and redirected over her. She watched the patch of chakra grow brighter and more intense with each passing hour and it scared her that she couldn't figure out what they were trying to do. She remembered Garra's demon being extracted, but she didn't know how exactly they did it. Naru was a little disturbed to admit she was curious as to how they would actually try to extract the Kyuubi and she had a feeling that she wouldn't like it when she found out._

 _The leader's voice snapped Naru out of her thoughts. "Before you die, I want you to know death and to know pain. I am the bringer of peace, Pein. You are helping me bring peace to the shinobi world."_

 _Naru protested, or at least tried too, but her words were cut off as the pocket of chakra descended upon her body and began pouring into every pore and cell. The streams of chakra worked their way into her body and in her mind's eye she could see the streams entering the bars of Kyuubi's cell and wrapping their ends around him. They pulled him closer to them and further away from Naru. Naru felt the searing pain as it tore through her cells and fried her nerves. She heard her screams echo off of the chakra barrier, causing her ears to ring._

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Tero dropped the cards in his hands and turned to look at the door marked with a three. The most horrific and gut wrenching screams and sobs were coming from inside the door.

Shigure stood up. "Should we do something?"

Tero shook his head. "We can't. If one of us goes in there we fall under the same genjutsu. It's connected to the room, so she can't break out of it until it runs its course. Just sit and ignore her."

Shigure tried, but every time another scream would flow from the room he would flinch.

Tero rolled his eyes. "Softy, that right there is music to my ears. It's not every day you get a captive that has such an interesting scream, it's like something is eating her up inside out."

Shigure's knuckles had gone white. "Stop Tero, just stop. I don't want to hear anymore."

Sakumo held up a hand for them to stop and they waited quietly before he gave the next signal to hide. They all scattered into higher tree branches just in time for an Iwa squad to land right beside the branches they were at. Kakashi pressed his back as close as he could to the trunk and concentrated hard on cloaking his chakra. Minato and Kushina ended up sharing the same branch, their arms wrapped around the same tree, barely touching.

Sakumo sat in a tree above them and watched with the eyes of a hawk to see if the Iwa patrol had sensed them or were just taking a break. Kakashi wanted to groan when he noticed them begin to set up camp. He slowly looked towards his dad to see what his orders were and Sakumo signed for him and the others to stay put. They would wait the shinobi out. Minato signed from across the branches that they should attempt to engage because the shinobi were really close to Fire Nation, but Sakumo shook his head. They didn't need to get into a fight before trying to find Naru.

Kushina nodded and they stayed as still as they could while waiting for the shinobi to leave. Kakashi mentally sighed before retreating back into his memories.

* * *

 **(Memory Sequence)**

 **It had taken nearly half a day for Kakashi to find Naru's trail because it was barely there. Pakkun and the other ninken had worked extra hard sniffing her out, following the barest of chakra trails left behind from her and Itachi. It took him another day and a half to find the right base and to stake it out.**

 **That night before he attacked he listened in helplessness as Naru's screams tore through the still air and he couldn't just sit there anymore. He attacked. He forgot about backup and didn't even stop to tell the Hokage about the situation. All Kakashi could think about was saving Naru and if that meant he died, then he died for his partner.**

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

The shinobi below them finally drifted off to sleep, setting one man on guard, who after awhile drifted off himself. Sakumo motioned for them and they left the area, but he stopped and turned to stare in the direction of the Iwa shinobi campsite. He turned back towards Kushina and asked, "Got any explosives?"

She smiled before pulling out the explosives. Sakumo doubled back and lit the end before dropping it into the middle of the cloth roof of the tent. When he returned he motioned for them to continue forward and pointedly ignored the explosion behind him. Kakashi couldn't help but shake his head at his dad before following after him.

* * *

 _(genjutsu sequence)_

 _Naru felt Kyuubi's chakra being pulled from her body and could also feel the resistance the demon put up. Kyuubi knew that if he left Naru's body not only would she die, but he would as well and the fox wasn't ready to die. He fought back and pushed against the chakra, almost winning before the strong chakra grew even more powerful and overtook him. Naru was openly sobbing at this point at how painful the extraction was and couldn't stop the stream of tears as she watched the commotion around her._

 _Out of the corner of her eye she caught the slightest sign of silver and immediately thought of her silver haired sensei. Her body began shutting down from the pain and the actual process itself. They had managed to remove not only Kyuubi's chakra, but also hers by accident and her body wasn't able to sustain itself any longer._

 _Her final thoughts were of her Sensei, hoping he saw how much she had changed._

Tero sighed as the screams and sobbing stopped. "Well, there goes my fun. Don't go in there yet. She's still under the genjutsu. We'll know to go in when the door unlocks."

Shigure nodded and wiped away a band of sweat from his brow. The whole episode had been more intense than he originally thought it would be. It made him wonder exactly what had happened to the little girl. Then the lock clicked and the door opened.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

Dad called another break just when we were about a half-day's travel from Iwa borders. I had slowed down a little bit and knew I needed to get my energy back up. Dad looked over me once more, but this time his face was a little worried. I eye smiled at him before sitting down.

"We're stopping here for the night. I'll take first watch. Minato, you can have second, Kushina you're up third and Kakashi you can take the morning shift."

We all nodded and began to get out the blankets we packed inside our packs. I knew what dad was doing. He had given me the longest time to sleep and I knew it was because he was worried I wouldn't be able to keep up. I rested my head against my pack and closed my eyes. I would prove him wrong and show him I could keep up. I closed my eyes and drifted off to sleep.

* * *

 **(Memory Sequence)**

 **Kakashi had gotten into the base easily. There wasn't a single guard and he figured it was because only idiots would break into Akatsuki's headquarters. Kakashi was an idiot with a purpose though. He silently made his way through the cave building and followed the sounds of chanting and screaming. Kakashi walked into an open room and felt his heart stop completely as he saw Naru suspended in the air and surrounded by chakra.**

 **He watched as her own red chakra would flicker every other second as it tried to combat the foreign chakra away from her. Kakashi looked at the Akatsuki member closest to him and smiled when he saw Deidara with his tongued hands and long blonde hair. Kakashi smirked before performing the seals for Chidori and slammed his fist into the missing ninja's back. The leader began shouting, but none of the other members of the organization could do anything or they would break the connection and Naru would get free. Pein looked on his anger as Kakashi then slammed another Chidori into Kisame and the chakra feed to Naru weakened more.**

 **Naru was no longer screaming, but the red chakra began leaking out of her at a furious pace. The other foreign chakra couldn't even compete with it. Naru's body lifted to a standing position and her eyes opened to show a blood red instead of clear blue. A demonic grin came across her face and with an evil laugh a red arm of chakra reached across and grabbed Pein firmly in its fiery hands. Pein screamed as his flesh and skin burned from the chakra. Itachi stared in shock and turned just as Kakashi Shunshined behind him and slit his throat. Naru walked forward with Pein's dying body and watched as the life drained out of his eyes. She dropped him to the ground and looked around for the blue haired woman. Konan was standing still beside Pein's broken body and tried to run.**

 **Naru's chakra arm wouldn't let her escape and slammed into the cave wall beside her. Konan turned to stare into Naru's eyes of hatred before disappearing into a million little pieces of paper and floating around the room. Naru smiled and performed a Katon jutsu to burn the paper away. Soon only Kakashi and Naru stood facing each other. The other Akatsuki members had fled while Naru was busy with Konan and while Kakashi was taking out Itachi. Kakashi walked closer to Naru and smiled at her, she in turn snarled.**

" **Naru, I'm very proud to call such a beautiful and strong Kunoichi my partner."**

 **Naru's red eyes widened before phasing out to blue, she collapsed into Kakashi's arms and whispered, "Take me home scarecrow."**

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Tero walked into the room to see Naru huddled in a ball and sobbing into her knees. He almost felt a pang of pity for the girl before dragging her into the light and picking her up. He flinched as she latched onto his neck and sobbed into his shoulder.

The girl didn't even consider killing him at that point. She was too shaken up by a memory she didn't get to finish. The genjutsu stopped her memories at her almost death and left Naru feeling the same numbing coldness she felt seconds before dying. The complete despair she felt at not being able to protect her precious people and the shame of letting her village down.

Tero carried the crying girl back to her cell and for once didn't throw her down. He gently set her down before walking out and locking the door. Her sobs followed him and were permanently etched into his mind.

Shigure watched her cry into her knees inside her cell and couldn't fight the guilty empty feeling he had inside his chest. His mother would have been very ashamed of her son for this. He shook his head and promised himself he would forget the blonde haired girl with a nice tall bottle of alcohol.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

We arrived in Iwa the next day around noon. It wasn't hard and we shouldn't raise any suspicions as long as we stayed away from the towns and cities and stuck to the hills and trees. The further we got into Iwa though, the more we saw rock formations and fewer trees. I sighed as I was stuck in the middle of the group once more and scanned the area before picking up my own pace.

I had almost fallen behind and didn't want dad to call another break, especially since we were so close to the last place Naru was seen. I watched the trees for any sign of enemy shinobi or potential traps. Since we were in Iwa we needed to be extra careful or we would be in trouble.

I was too busy watching for enemies and traps to notice the next branch I landed on was rotten from a storm. I felt my foot go through the weak wood and my body plummeted to the ground.

Dad quickly turned, but couldn't make it in time. All I could see was the open terror in his eyes as I fell a couple hundred feet to the forest floor.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Minato watched as Kakashi landed on a rotten branch and fell through. He didn't even think. He just let his body act as he sprang forward and caught Kakashi before he hit the ground.

He let out a sigh of relief as he settled Kakashi on the branch beside him and checked him over. "Are you okay?"

Kakashi nodded. "I didn't notice the branch was broken."

Minato was breathing heavily as he ruffled Kakashi's hair and turned him over to Sakumo. It was always fun to see Sakumo go into over-protective daddy mode and Minato wondered if he would get a chance to be that way with Naru.

Sakumo landed in front of his son. "Kakashi, what happened?"

Kakashi shook his head. "I didn't see the branch was rotten and just kind of fell."

There was definite relief in Sakumo's eyes, but he sighed. "We'll break for now."

Kakashi shook his head. "I'm fine dad and, besides, we're so close to getting there that there's no point in stopping."

Sakumo looked at his determined son before admitting defeat. "Fine, let's go then."

The four shinobi took off again and disappeared into the trees, except this time Kakashi made sure he watched for rotten branches.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I wiped my running nose against my arm and tried to clear my throat, only to feel numbing pain travel up and down my esophagus. I whimpered once more before uncurling myself and lying flat on my back.

I could still feel the depressing weight in my heart and wanted to do nothing more than find my daddy or Sakumo-sensei and cry into one of their shoulders. I felt my body shiver as a new batch of tears wormed their way out of my eyes and fell salty against my cheeks.

My capture by Akatsuki had been horrible because of the complete helpless and numb feeling I had gotten right before I almost died. It was a horrible feeling that was only brought out because of their chakra ripping mine away. I calmed my breathing and willed myself to remember the rest of the memory; Kakashi had saved me. I could remember exactly why I loved that memory so, because Kakashi acknowledged me as his partner. He saw me as an equal and I had rejoiced. Even though I almost died I had been happy. I wanted that warm feeling of happiness, not the horrible coldness that I was feeling.

I wiped away my tears because a crybaby never accomplished anything and I was going to get out of this hellhole even if it killed me. I sighed before thinking back to Sakumo-sensei's first lesson.

My eyes were getting heavy again. The force of crying had taken a lot out of me and I knew the answer to his chakra question now. I would have to tell him the answer next time I see him.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Tero walked into the cell and picked the blonde girl up. He was getting attached and that was dangerous. He actually felt bad for her yesterday and that meant he was seeing her as a human. Shigure hadn't reacted any better than him. The man was currently nursing a huge hangover in door number four. Yes, today Naru would visit the fourth door and she was currently the only captive to ever make it to the fourth door.

Tero placed the girl on the ground and walked over to the object in the middle of the cold room. Shigure was standing beside a white porcelain bathtub that was filled to the brim with freezing cold water. Little ice crystals formed on top of the water and both men needed wet suits on so they could perform the water torture. They had already suited up before getting her. Tero grabbed the girl on one side and Shigure grabbed her on the other. Together they lowered her into the bath slowly, as she rested just above the water. Tero gave the signal and at the same time they shoved her body underneath the freezing waters.

They watched as the girl's eyes popped open and she struggled against their hands and arms. Her mouth opened to suck in a breath and all she could get was water.

Tero nodded and they lifted her up. "Konoha had the warehouse in Rokku destroyed. How did they know about the warehouse, Naru?"

Naru turned before coughing and snarling. "I don't know!"

Tero shook his head before nodding and shoving her back underneath the water. Again the girl kicked and squirmed, but they held her underneath the water a few seconds longer than the time before.

"Konoha changed their supply lines. We know this, so why don't you tell us where the new ones are?"

Naru stared straight ahead, her body shivering and her teeth chattering.

"Again then."

The two male shinobi plunged her back underneath the water and watched as she fought against them. She opened her mouth and sucked in more water. Tero waited before lifting her. There was pure panic and terror in her eyes as she realized he was going to push her to the edge of drowning before letting her up. The air bubbles became less and less. Her hands slowly lost their grip on the men's arms and only then did Tero and Shigure lift her from the water.

Shigure smacked a chakra filled hand against her back and forced her to take a breath. She coughed up water and stomach acid as she tried to catch her breath.

"Naru tell me about the village. Where are the weak points?"

Naru's coughing only increased and more stomach acid made its way into the freezing water. Her teeth chattered loudly in the room and sparked a fierce pit of anger in Tero's stomach. This little girl had made him question his very job in Iwa. He growled and using all of his strength he pushed her back underneath the waters. He had a tight grip on her throat and ignored Shigure as he tried to pry him off of the girl.

He hovered over her and watched those pretty blue eyes widen and her little mouth gasp for air. He could feel her neck muscles contracting underneath his fingers and watched her chest still. He knew it was filling with water with every passing second but didn't care. This girl had caused him to doubt himself and everything he stood for. She was dangerous.

"Tero let go of her! If you kill her we won't get anything else! Let go!"

Shigure finally managed to pull Tero off the girl and watched in silent horror as she floated to the top of the tub. He pulled her out and immediately began reviving her and trying to get her heart and lungs to start working again.

Tero shivered and watched his handiwork. He finally made that guilt go away, which was great because if she survived he would get her all to himself in door number five, the final door.

Shigure felt like killing Tero as he finally managed to get the girl's heart to restart and her lungs to work. He noticed the blue color of her lips and brushed his fingers against them. She promptly sat up and began coughing and throwing up water. She whimpered before moving away from the tub and both of them. Shigure couldn't help but notice that she looked like an abused puppy. "Take her back to her cell and feed her something warm. Get her some blankets, anything, just make her warm."

It was dark when they arrived at the last place Naru had been seen by one of Jiraiya's informants. All four shinobi landed near the clearing. Sakumo had told them all to stay away to make sure they didn't disturb the scent or add new ones to the evidence. New scents tended to cover up old ones. Sakumo summoned four of his best tracker ninken. Shiri, Tobias, Ryrie and Kirin stood proudly in the clearing as Sakumo took out one of Naru's shirts from his pack.

It was the one that she had worn the day before she left and it had been left underneath her bed, so he hadn't washed any of her scent away. Each ninken began sniffing the article of clothing and sniffing around the clearing. Sakumo began looking for obvious signs of struggle and found an entire thicket had been destroyed. They were heading west; at least Jiraiya's informant was right about one thing. Sakumo kept looking around before his nose led him to an area that looked to have been a campsite at one time. He felt the ground and saw the scent was fresh and most likely the scent of whatever shinobi had taken Naru.

He sighed before rechecking the area and seeing if anything was out of place before calling the rest of the team over. Kakashi landed in the clearing and looked around.

Minato was looking around too before turning to Sakumo. "Find anything?"

Sakumo nodded. "They're heading west and I believe Kirin has picked up a pretty good scent. It's heading between Fort Kei and Fort Rui. I have a hunch that she's going to be in Fort Kei since it's become the new prison for Iwa."

Kushina walked around the clearing and bent down to pick something off of the ground. "Sakumo, what's this?"

Sakumo walked over and looked at the piece of cloth in her hand. He scanned it before smiling. "It's a piece of Naru's shirt. It must have been torn off while they went though the thicket."

Minato looked overjoyed and quickly stood to look at the dirty piece of fabric. Sakumo whistled and the ninken returned to him at once. "Did you find the scent?"

All four ninken nodded and Sakumo motioned for them to continue. "We'll follow them and see where they take us and hopefully they'll take us right to Naru."

Kakashi nodded and took off after his father.

Minato turned to Kushina and walked over to her and kissed her cheek gently. "You're always doing stuff like this, giving me hope when I'm in despair."

Kushina blushed before taking off after Kakashi. Minato smiled before heading after them.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I woke up surrounded by blankets and with a warm cup of tea in front of me. I didn't even care if it was drugged this time. I drank the cup gladly and tried to stop the shivers down my spine. I burrowed deeper into the warmth of my blankets and tried to drift back into sleep, but I couldn't force my body to go. I vaguely wondered how long I had been in captivity and if anyone was looking for me.

The cell doors clanged open and I found myself looking at Tero yet again, but this time I kept flashing back to the tub and whimpered before trying to get as far away from him as I could get.

"Oh this is the thanks I get for keeping a hot cup of tea in here for when you woke up?"

I blinked before finding my raspy voice. "Well, if you hadn't tried to kill me in the freezing water we wouldn't have this problem would we?"

He didn't growl at me, or even snarl, instead he laughed and clapped his hands. Three Iwa shinobis, the same ones that had gotten me ready for every transport, walked into the cell with the same old handcuffs and ropes. I had learned the routine by now and quietly let them secure me before following them to the T&I room. I couldn't help but smirk at the other man. I had almost been through all five of his doors of torture and had survived without spilling any huge secrets.

His own smirk had me rethinking that though. Together we entered door number five and I blinked in confusion as I saw four other people tied to chairs. Tero led me to a table and sat me in front of the table in the chair. My legs were strapped to the chair's legs and my arms were chained to the table. Tero walked off to the side and I was left to stare at the four civilians in front of me.

The two males were perfect opposites of each other. The one on the right had black hair and green eyes while the one on the left had blonde hair and brown eyes. They both had identical looks of sickness and terror on their faces. I tried to smile at them, but they refused to meet my eyes and stared at the floor or at the wall. The two females looked liked sisters. They both had the same brown hair and blue eyes, but their faces didn't match. The one on the left had a more round face and the one on the right had a square face. They both looked to be only about sixteen-years-old, definitely younger than the men who both looked like they were pushing twenty-five.

I turned my head to look at Tero. "So what is this? A staring contest?" It still hurt to talk, but if I could just manage to rile him up.

He laughed again and it sent another round of shivers down my back. "No princess, this is your punishment for being such a bad girl and not giving me the answers I needed. You're going to pick something off of that table."

I nodded and looked at the instruments of torture on the table. "After you pick an item off the table, I'm going to use it on one of them. You're going to be indirectly torturing the innocents in this room. Congrats."

My heart stilled with his words as one of the women let out a loud wail of anguish. "N-no! I refuse! D-do it to me instead! I'm a shinobi not them!"

Tero laughed. "I've watched you for a long time Naru, and the only way I'm going to break you is to harm someone in front of you. You're very caring and wear your heart on your sleeve, which is going to be your downfall."

He walked over to the men and pointed to me. "Pick Naru or I'll pick and it'll be worst."

I blinked away tears as I looked at the items on the table. How did he expect me to pick something to cause another person pain?

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Tero watched as Naru shook her head. "No, I refuse!"

Tero shook his head. "Fine by me."

He walked over to the table and took the pliers off of the table and began extracting the teeth of his black haired victim. He turned to watch Naru close her eyes and try to block the horrors out of her mind. Tero stopped in the middle of his activity, leaving the sobbing mess of a man behind and made a clone. The clone walked behind Naru and slapped her before forcing her eyes open.

The clone whispered into Naru's ear. "This is your entire fault Naru. If you would just tell us what we want to know we'll stop and let them go."

Naru whimpered as the black haired man screamed against the pain. Tero backed away from the bloody mess and dropped the pliers onto the floor.

"Naru, what next or do I get to pick again?"

Naru let out a sob before shaking her head once more. "P-please n-n-no, they don't deserve this!"

Tero shrugged before walking over to the table and picking up a branding iron. There was a fire in the back of the room. He placed the iron into the hot fire and smirked at the blonde haired man and blonde haired girl. The clone continued his whispering into her ears.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I couldn't get the clone out of my head. His bitter words made me want to cry and break away. I looked towards the crying and bloody man in front of me. He was just a civilian and didn't deserve this, none of them did. I started to believe what the clone told me. This was entirely my fault and I was just as bad as Tero for letting it happen. The branding iron was in the shape of a rock and I watched the end get red hot inside the crackling fire.

The blonde haired man whimpered because he knew he was next. I silently begged him to forgive me for what he had to go through, to forgive my weakness. Tero deemed the branding iron hot enough and walked over to the blonde haired man. He ripped the button up shirt open and pressed the hot iron against the cool flesh. Screams echoed through the room and I screamed with him. Tero pressed the iron into his skin seven more times and the smell of burning flesh grew strong in the room.

I resisted the urge to vomit and instead wailed with the branded man. Tero grinned before brushing a sweaty lock of hair away from the nape of the man's neck. "Sing for me again."

He pressed the branding iron onto the side of the man's face and I watched the skin practically melt at the touch.

I pleaded once again. "Tero stop! Stop! Stop! Please Stop!"

I knew I couldn't betray my village, but I had to stop their pain. I couldn't just let their pain continue. Tero turned to me, "Had enough? Tell me anything and everything you know Naru and I'll stop all of this."

I shook my head. I couldn't betray my village and that became my mantra. I focused solely on my mantra and pushed all other sounds and thoughts out of my head. Tero obviously didn't like this. He had finished with the first brown haired woman and from the amount of blood on both his and her clothes I knew she was bad off. I didn't even want to know what he had done to her.

He growled at me. "Fine, I know something that will get you and then you'll spill all of those pretty little secrets."

I watched as he brought in another man I hadn't seen before. He was big and tall. The non-harmed woman in the chair began to tremble and plead. I watched as he began to take her out of the chair and lay her on the floor. Tero held her hands above her head and the big guy began stripping her. I sucked in a breath and willed myself away with screaming and tears. The clone grabbed my head and forced me to watch, all the time whispering into my ear that her pain was my fault and her shame was my shame.

I had disgraced her and all of the others. I had caused their pain. He called me a monster. I focused solely on her face and watched the silent screams of horror and gut wrenching wails of anguish. The tears fell down her face and mixed with the blood on the floor. My mind came to a realization; I was a monster, no better than the demon in my body. My mind shut down as black spots danced in front of my eyes. I hadn't realized I had been holding my breath until I needed to breathe.

My mind went on autopilot and I welcomed the darkness.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Tero smirked as the other shinobi finished off the girl by crushing her windpipe and began to kill off the other prisoners. They had fulfilled their purpose and weren't needed anymore. Tero had finally broken the blonde little spitfire.

He grinned. "Someone take her back to her cell. We'll let Shigure have a go at her later and I'm sure she'll be more compliant."

One of the male shinobi grabbed the blubbering mess of a girl and took her to her cell and dropped her into the blankets. Naru was conscious enough to burrow underneath the blankets and try to shield herself from the horrible terrors that were going on around her. She had never wanted her daddy more than she did at that point.

Sakumo looked at the small footprint and smiled. Someone had placed Naru on the ground and forgot to remove the prints. He could clearly see where her body had slept on the cold ground. They had passed Fort Aoi earlier in the day, but Naru's scent was nowhere near that fort. They were getting closer to Fort Rui and since Fort Ni was behind Fort Aoi there was a great possibility that Naru wasn't in that fort either.

In fact, Sakumo was about one hundred percent sure that she wasn't in Fort Ni because of the direction of the scent and of the tracks. They were heading to either Fort Kei or Fort Rui. Kakashi looked around the clearing and sighed before sitting down. Sakumo had called a break for the night. They were close to the last two forts, but they needed to be well rested or they weren't going to get anywhere.

Minato passed out ration bars and they began taking shifts for watch again. Kakashi volunteered for the first shift and soon found himself sitting in a tree watching the forest around them and staring at the stars. He couldn't help but wonder how Naru was doing and if she was still going strong. He sighed before returning his attention to the forest around him and scanning for any foreign chakra signals.

After he found none, he returned to star gazing.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

We finally began moving the next morning and I couldn't have been happier. We were so close to finding Naru that I could almost see us rescuing her. Dad had the last shift and woke everyone up. We each downed another ration bar before taking off. We still stuck close to the tree line, but there were now more rock formations to use as cover. Fort Rui appeared in the distance and I looked in awe at the huge fort surrounded with guards and Iwa patrols.

Dad stopped us and began searching for the scent with the ninken. He shook his head. Her scent didn't go to the fort. She wasn't in Fort Rui; she had to be in Fort Kei. Dad turned and I could see a tiny shred of fear in his eyes. That fort had caused us so much trouble and nearly broke my family up. I wondered how Dad was going to handle this.

Minato-sensei stood beside Dad and sighed. "She's in Kei isn't she?"

Dad nodded. "Her scent goes nowhere near the others, which leaves us with our last choice, Fort Kei."

Kushina had paled, but nodded. "Well, we're so close now that we can't stop. Let's hurry."

Dad nodded and we took off. We had been conserving as much chakra as we could, but this time called for it. I felt _Hanshou_ burn hot in its sheath and hissed before taking it out. Minato-sensei stopped Dad with the signal and pointed to me. Dad doubled back and stopped beside me before taking _Hanshou_ out of my hands.

He smiled at it from underneath his mask before handing it back. "We're close or _Hanshou_ wouldn't recognize _Tsukiakari_."

I grinned underneath my own mask. This was a sign and I knew we were close.

We arrived just outside of Fort Kei hours later and almost on schedule. When we were held up by the Iwa squad we lost a few hours of travel time, but we quickly made it up after we passed the border of Iwa. I could feel Dad's nostalgia as he looked over and into the belly of the dreaded fort. We stood on top of the hill and looked with him. I could see the guards at every station and the shinobi inside the fort.

Dad motioned for us to retreat into the trees and we followed behind him. The four ninken stood faithfully by his side and waited for his orders. The youngest one of the group, Kirin, wagged his tail playfully at me before nuzzling his muzzle into my side. I scratched him behind the ears before looking to Dad for his orders. He pulled out a map of the fort.

"I never thought I'd use this map again. We've got to decide how we're getting in."

Kushina began scanning the map before pointing to the entrances. "Are these the only entrances? There has to be another entrance somewhere."

Sensei looked at her. "Why would you say that?"

She looked him in the eye. "If they only had the four main entrances, how would they get out in the event of an attack? If they only made the main entrances then they were very arrogant in thinking they would never suffer an assault."

Dad blinked and I couldn't help but grin at her. She may be loud, but she was useful.

"We need to find the other entrances then and once in there head to the bottom layers. That's where the prisoners are kept." He pointed to the bottom layer on the map. "Stay clear of the big room in the middle of the lower levels. I'm going in to rescue her."

Sensei protested, but Dad cut him off. "Minato, if we all go down there it increases the chances of us all getting caught. I'll go down there and you stay with Kushina. You guys are going to take care of exterminating any shinobi you come across and getting ready to burn this fort to the ground. Kakashi, your job is to find Naru's katana. You're the smallest and would get around the room easier than any of us."

I nodded and gripped _Hanshou_ in my hand. "Let's go search for these entrances. Kakashi come with me."

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Kakashi and Sakumo made their way down the hill and close to the fort. Both of their chakras cloaked and barely readable. Sakumo's eyes scanned the points closest to the walls and Kakashi scanned the shadows of the building to see if there was anything hidden by the shadows.

They moved to the side, each of their eyes following the building and searching for a door or passage. Sakumo spotted a small opening in the stone of the building. It looked like it was used as an air vent to get fresh air into the lower level. The only one that could have fit into it though, was Kakashi.

Minato and Kushina scanned the building on their side with wide eyes and shallow breathing. They both knew Naru was right in front of them and all they had to do was get in and everything would be okay. Then Kushina saw the half hidden passage just to the right of the main west gate.

She pointed to it and Minato couldn't keep the silly grin off of his face, they had found their way in. The only problem was that a guard was stationed right beside it. They both mentally groaned before retreating back to the forest to wait for Sakumo and Kakashi.

Once all four returned to the forest and gave their reports Sakumo sighed before sitting down and thinking. "We've got a potential entry point. All we've got to do now is get in."

Kakashi sighed before rummaging through his pack and tossing the flash bangs into Sakumo's lap. Sakumo caught them and looked up at him quizzically. "What?"

Kakashi eye smiled at him. "I'll enter through the air vent and create an explosion inside the building, which should draw all the shinobi to the explosion and away from the entrances, giving you guys enough time to get in and get to work. I'll look for _Hanshou_ and meet back up with you somewhere in the fort, which shouldn't be hard as long as I can sense your chakras."

Sakumo shook his head and Minato smiled proudly at his student's ingenious plan. Sakumo stood up before addressing them. "Well, let's go. We've lost a lot of time already and she's so close I can almost feel her. Let's go bring our Naru home."

The three shinobi nodded and followed after Sakumo.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

We stopped right in front of the air vent, making sure we were still hidden by the tree line. Dad scanned the area before nodding to for me to go on. I looked back at him and saw the terror in his eyes. He hated sending me into danger, but knew I was the only one that could accomplish this. He was confident that I was going to be alright and I promised myself that I would be alright just for him. I cloaked my chakra and vigilantly scanned my surroundings.

When I got underneath the air vent I carefully pushed chakra into my feet and walked the short distance up the wall to the grate. I lifted the grate off of the air vent and pulled myself inside before reattaching the grate over the hole. I looked out between the grate to see Sensei's worried face and with a small wave I disappeared into the darkness.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Minato, Kushina, and Sakumo watched Kakashi disappear before silently moving to the other side of the fort to wait for their signal to infiltrate.

They just hoped Kakashi knew what he was doing and didn't get caught.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I cried myself to sleep for the first time in a long time and for that I was grateful. My mind was so exhausted I didn't dream about the horrors that had happened right in front of me, nor did I dream about how much of a monster I was. I sniffled once more before wiping the tears away and burrowing further into the blankets they had given me. The lady beside me had hummed softly throughout the night and I didn't know if she was doing it to comfort me or because she had finally lost it.

I took comfort in it though. It was the same old lullaby Iruka-sensei hummed whenever I was sick or came to him feeling lonely. I sighed and closed my eyes as I heard the sound of the door clanging open once again. I opened both eyes to see Tero staring at me, but focusing on my neck. I knew his fingers had left purple bruises around my throat, so I didn't need him staring at them.

He surprised me. He sat down across from me and just watched me. I turned away from him and whimpered at the movement. He was silent before I heard him clear his throat. "You know, if you weren't so stubborn all of this wouldn't have happened."

I didn't answer him. I just couldn't find the desire to. I was going to die in a pitiful mess on the floor and I was okay with that. I didn't want to live anymore. It was just too painful. No one was coming or they would have come already. I closed my eyes again and listened to the drip of the water falling close to my head.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I tunneled through the vent as quietly as I could, which was harder than I thought it would be. I had to crawl on my hands and knees and try to keep _Hanshou_ from scratching the top of the vent. I messed up once already and _Hanshou_ had hit the top and made a loud banging sound. I thought it was all over, but after a few minutes of waiting I didn't hear anything and continued. Oh and did I mention that the vent was at a downward angle? Yeah, it was harder than I thought it would be.

I made it to the end of the vent and saw two branches, one to the right and one to the left. I decided to go right to plant the explosion and then I'd retreat and go left to get out of the vent. I cautiously made my way right and nearly jumped for joy when I saw light streaming into the vent.

I peered through the grated opening and saw the room below was empty and perfect for what I needed to do. I pushed chakra into my fingers and cut a small hole into the grate made of weak wire before taking out three flash bangs. I pulled all of the rings at once and tossed them into the room. I had exactly twenty seconds before they went off, so I quickly crawled back into the opposite vent.

As I was crawling back I heard the explosion, but I didn't expect the venting to be rattled. Normally flash bangs only emitted a bright light and loud sound. The only way they would have exploded like that was if I accidentally mixed a hand grenade in with the flash bangs. I forced chakra into my hands to grip the slick metal, but unfortunately the pressure of the chakra was too much for the vent panel and I fell through into the room below me.

I groaned before scanning my surroundings and finding myself alone in one of the lower levels. I hid behind the door and listened to the sound of feet running to check on the explosion. I sighed before scolding myself for not paying closer attention to what I had placed inside my pack, but it did get the job done. I checked Hanshou and saw the chakra growing brighter, pulsing more and knew that I was close to Naru's katana.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

When Sakumo heard the explosion and saw the guards run into the fort he couldn't stop smiling. His son had come through for them. They nodded to each other and began storming the fort. A single guard was stationed behind the secret entrance, but Sakumo quickly took care of him with his tanto. A stab to the kidneys had the man dead in seconds.

He nodded back to Minato and Kushina as they split up from him and left him go find Naru. Sakumo headed to the lower levels while Minato and Kushina stuck to the top layers, trying to keep reinforcements away from Sakumo and Kakashi.

Tero blinked in surprise once he heard the explosion. Naru lifted her head off of her arms and looked around, disoriented and worried. She looked to her torturer. "What's happening?"

He shrugged. "I don't know."

Tero walked outside to see a Kunoichi running towards him. "We're being invaded. The captain said to kill all of the prisoners because that's what they've come for."

Tero nodded and grabbed the closest shinobi to him. In his haste he failed to recognize Yuuma among those shinobi. "Go to the blonde girl's cell and keep her there. Don't touch her on my orders. I want to end her life; she's been a worthy opponent."

The men nodded, but Yuuma smiled evilly before heading after them. Tero pulled out a kunai and began getting to work.

Kakashi headed down the hall with his senses pointed sharply all around him, trying to make sure he wasn't going to be caught by surprise. He sensed a chakra signal heading his way and immediately got on the defensive. An Iwa ninja stumbled into the corridor and blinked as he saw the young boy.

He took one look at Kakashi's silver hair before his eyes widened and began backing away. Kakashi didn't take a chance and quickly shot towards the man, slicing him open with _Hanshou_. The blood sprayed against the wall as the man dropped at Kakashi's feet and twitched before finally stilling. Kakashi wiped Hanshou off on the man's shirt and followed where the pulsing chakra led him.

Sakumo dropped into a hallway where five Iwa shinobi stood trying to figure out what was going on. The female in the group eyes widened and she alerted the others to his presence. Sakumo grinned before propelling himself forward and jumping over the group to land behind them.

The closest one to Sakumo wasn't fast enough to escape Sakumo's tanto swipe and crumpled to the floor. The others began pulling out weapons, but Sakumo simply dodged the thrown kunai and shuriken and performed a Katon jutsu. He disappeared before the smell of burning flesh could reach his nostrils.

Kushina and Minato fought back to back as they faced the shinobi on the upper levels. Minato could tell which shinobi were the ones forced to serve Iwa and which ones chose to serve Iwa. The once Grass shinobi would get close to Minato and Kushina before turning on their Iwa captors. Minato couldn't help but grin as he began to form the Rasengan. The spiraling ball of chakra caught the attention of the Iwa shinobi and caused some to run from their immediate doom.

Minato just laughed before chasing after the shinobi and ramming the ball into their backs. Internal organs screamed in protest as the ball of chakra kept trying to force its way into them.

Kushina began performing hand seals and a stone dragon appeared from behind her and began slamming into Iwa shinobi.

Minato returned to her side and raised an eyebrow. "What was that?"

She smiled brightly. "Do ya like it? It's my newest jutsu; I call it the Stone Dragon of Death."

Minato shook his head before throwing a kunai at a shinobi on the top of the fort. "If we ever have kids, you're not allowed to name them."

Kushina rolled her eyes at Minato. "More fighting, less talking."

 _Hanshou_ pulsed and glowed brightly in Kakashi's hand as he stopped in front of a locked door. He growled before pumping chakra into his muscles and breaking the doorknob off. Kakashi dropped the broken knob to the floor and walked into the dark room. He flipped on a light and found the room filled with clothes, forehead protectors and weapons.

Kakashi tilted his head before he realized this was where they kept the belongings of their captives. _Hanshou_ blinked pulsed and Kakashi smiled when he saw _Tsukiakari_ pulse back in time with the sister katana. Kakashi grabbed the other katana and strapped it to his back.

He was heading out when he saw a leaf forehead protector sitting near the spot where the katana was. He walked back over and picked it up before stuffing it into his weapons pouch on his thigh. Kakashi left the room and began heading down the corridor towards the sounds of fighting.

Sakumo skidded to a stop and saw a man coming out of the cells with a bloody kunai. The man turned and snarled out his name. "Hatake Sakumo. You must be here for your student."

Sakumo ignored the man and threw a kunai at him. Tero blocked and jumped towards Sakumo to try and catch him off guard. Sakumo dodged to the left and sliced Tero across the back with his tanto. Tero hissed in pain before bringing his own kunai and slamming it into Sakumo's out stretched arm.

Sakumo ignored the pain and twisted his body to land a solid kick into Tero's side. Tero staggered before regaining his balance and performing hand seals, but Sakumo was faster. He raced forward and crushed Tero's fingers in his chakra filled grasp. The bones made sickening cracks in the still air and Tero's face paled as his ninjutsu ability was taken from him. Tero fought through the pain and kicked Sakumo weakly in the shin before jumping away from the dangerous man.

Yuuma walked into the girl's cell and smirked at her shivering and weeping body. He looked at his partners and pulled out two kunai before handing the weapons to them. "I'm in charge and if you two do as I say, I'll let you have a go."

The men looked at the girl and nodded. Even covered in dirt and bruises she held a certain innocence they craved to touch. "Hold her down."

One of the men kneeled by Naru's head and roused the girl from her rest by flipping her onto her back. Naru struggled against him and the other man slapped her across the face. Yuuma heard her jaw crack. The man at her head grabbed her arms and pinned them above her head. The tears fell from Naru's eyes and made her look years younger. Yuuma smiled before digging his knees into her thighs.

She had already tried to kick him between the legs and he wasn't going to let her try again. He crushed her body with his and ran his hands down her side before whispering into her ear. "Do you want to know why I'm doing this? Do you want to know why you deserve all of this?"

Naru made a strangled sound and tried to move away from the hot breath that fell onto her neck. It made her skin crawl and she didn't like it, she knew it was wrong. Yuuma gently stroked her arm before digging his nails into her skin and drawing blood. "You deserve this because of what you did to my daughters and to my wife."

Naru couldn't talk because of her jaw, so instead she shook her head in denial.

"Oh yes, my family was in that warehouse that night. You murdered my children, my little girls."

Naru's eyes widened in shock before she tried to fight against them once more, not believing what he said was true.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

No, no, no! I fought against them, my mind clear for the first time in days. The pounding headache that was there was gone as I listened to this man in front of me. It wasn't my fault. I didn't know about the girls and even if I did I would have had to complete my mission.

They were just in the wrong place at the wrong time and I couldn't be blamed for that. I whimpered as he continued talking and telling me about his little girls. He stopped before looking at me with this strange look in his eye, the same look Jiraiya used to get around the bathhouse.

My heart pounded hard against my ears as I realized what that emotion was; it was lust.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Yuuma grinned as he saw the terrified look on the girl's face as he slowly worked his way down her body. When she struggled again he popped her arm out of socket. Her scream tore through the building, but he ignored it. He ignored the fact that she was about the same age as his youngest daughter was and focused on the fact that she was female and this was about dominance and power.

He had to prove to himself that he was in control and he was going to prove this through her. Naru screamed in pain as the man above her tugged harshly on her dislocated arm. The pain sliced through her like a knife. Yuuma leaned down and smirked before biting her hard on the lips, drawing blood and letting the drops slide down her face and around her neck. He grinned once more before yanking her bottoms off of her body.

Naru's eyes widened in shock and surprise. She squirmed, trying to get away from his body heat and from the horrible act he was trying to commit to her body. She found the strength to scream out a strangled 'no' before another hand slapped her already fractured jaw.

She looked around the room and saw no friendly faces before resigning herself to her fate. There was no one there to save her or protect her. Naru closed her eyes and gave up.

Above her Yuuma grinned before preparing himself to take back control.

Sakumo slammed his tanto through Tero's chest and watched as the man grabbed the blade before looking up into Sakumo's eyes. "Y-you tr-trained h-her w-well."

The life left his eyes and Sakumo pulled the tanto out of his chest before taking off down the hall. He heard Naru's screams bounce off the stone walls and stopped before the cell that housed the only living captive. Sakumo's blood boiled as he watched Yuuma and saw what he was doing. With lightning fast reflexes he shot into the cell and swiftly decapitated Yuuma before the man was able to begin to rape Naru.

The head bounced to the side of the cell and the body fell backwards. The other shinobi in the room never knew what was coming as Sakumo ran his tanto through the eye of the man holding Naru down. The dead body fell backwards and as Sakumo wretched the tanto out of the man's skull he sliced the other across the throat. Sakumo was breathing heavily as he looked down at the pitiful form that was his student. "Naru?"

Naru opened her eyes and saw her sensei before looking around and seeing the blood and gore. She hiccupped and whimpered as Sakumo knelt beside her and scooped her into his arms. He began looking for her pants and found them before slipping them on her. She held tight onto her sensei and couldn't stop the tears of joy. Sakumo cradled her close to his chest and began leaving the cell. Naru looked over his shoulder to see the woman that lived in the cell beside her, smiling in the peace of death.

She hid her face into her sensei's shoulder and promptly passed out.

Kakashi felt a strong chakra heading his way and skidded to a stop before bringing _Hanshou_ into a defensive position. His eyes widened when he realized it was his dad and he had Naru. "Dad! You found her!"

Sakumo nodded before grabbing Kakashi's hand and dragging his son after him. They finally made it to the upper level to find Minato and Kushina setting explosive tags and dynamite on the main supports. Minato saw his daughter and immediately ran to Sakumo to get her, but as soon as he touched her, she began thrashing and screaming in her sleep.

Sakumo gently whispered into her ear and calmed her back down before turning to Minato. "She's just confused and in pain. I'm pretty sure her shoulder is dislocated and her jaw is either fractured or broken. She'll want you as soon as she realizes that you're here and she's safe."

Minato nodded before finishing with the exploding tags and walking over to the others. Kakashi looked at Naru worriedly before following after Sakumo. There were still shinobi in the lower levels, so they needed to get out as soon as they could.

They left as the last exploding tag was planted on the supports. Sakumo stood on the hill and watched as Kushina and Minato released the seals. The exploding tags released their explosives and the fort disappeared momentarily in the blast and the supports crumbled, taking stone walls along with them. Naru opened an eye and turned her head to watch the fort collapse in on itself.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I watched the fort collapse, my own personal hell, and couldn't help but feel happy. My nightmare was over and I was safe.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo tightened his hold on Naru and nodded to Minato and the others. They took off into the forest, leaving behind the ruins of Fort Kei.


	24. Chapter 21

**Chapter 21**

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

"I'm placing twenty on red eighteen."

The dealer looked up to meet her eyes. "Ma'am, you've lost the last twenty times on red eighteen. Are you sure you want to try that again?"

The young blonde haired woman smirked. "Don't question me, just do it."

The dealer sighed before giving the wheel a spin. Honey eyes watched the spinning with an intense stare almost as if she was trying to will it to stop on her bet. The wheel stopped spinning and the dealer smiled smugly at the pretty blonde. A curse escaped past her red lips.

The chair beside her squeaked as another patron sat beside her. The Slug Princess didn't even need to turn and look as she felt her teammate's chakra. She knew exactly who it was and that caused her growing headache to intensify. She cut her eyes over and looked into the solemn face of Jiraiya. The expression on his face said everything. She sighed before bidding farewell to the dealer and walking to her hotel room. The Toad Sage followed close behind.

Once they were inside her hotel room, Jiraiya leaned against the wall and looked everywhere but at her. "Sensei wants you back in the village Tsunade."

Tsunade snorted before sitting on the bed. "I thought he wanted me to stay here and gather information."

Jiraiya shook his head. "He's changed his mind, well, had his mind changed."

Tsunade raised an eyebrow at that. "What do you mean?"

A sigh was heard and Jiraiya pushed himself off of the wall and walked to sit beside her on the bed. "A young Chunin was captured by Iwa a few days ago and Sensei sent a rescue team to get her. When they retrieve the girl he wants you to heal her."

"Why me? Konoha has other medics and there's no guarantee they'll get her."

Jiraiya shook his head. "They'll get her because her father won't stop until he gets her back."

Tsunade blinked before getting off of the bed and taking a sake bottle and glass off of the table. "Well, daddy dearest is just going to have to face reality because his daughter is probably dead."

The Toad Sage shook his head. "No, Iwa will keep her alive because of who her father is."

"Okay, I'll bite, who is her father?"

Jiraiya sighed. "Namikaze Minato."

Tsunade dropped the sake glass.

* * *

A figure stood on a hill and watched as the fort collapsed in on itself and the unfortunate shinobi that didn't make it to the emergency exits in time. For some reason he couldn't make himself feel bad about the unlucky few that were crushed beneath the falling stone. A ghost of a smile appeared on his face as he thought of the irony of Iwa shinobi dying by falling rock; it was a fitting death.

"Live by the rock, die by the rock." He chuckled into the night.

The wind answered and whipped around the man, disturbing the black cloak he had managed to snag before leaving the compound. The hood fell backwards to reveal the oddly colored hair of the interrogator, Shigure. His eyes were hollow and unfocused as he turned and began walking. He didn't know where he was going, but he knew he wasn't going back to Iwa. He closed his eyes before remembering the blonde haired little girl and that strengthened his resolve. There was no way in Hell he was going back to Iwa willingly.

 _Flashback…_

 _Shigure angrily slammed doors as he waited for Tero to finish with the final torture tactic. He hadn't been allowed by the higher ups to see the final door and his curiosity was beginning to get the better of him. Shigure tensed at the sound of light footsteps as they stopped outside his door before it opened. Tero stood with a slight smile on his face. "I broke her."_

 _Shigure didn't understand why his heart dropped into his stomach at those words. He wasn't supposed to get attached to prisoners, but he was doing exactly that. This realization strengthened his resolve even more; he knew what he needed to do. He managed to steady his voice before answering. "How?"_

 _It wasn't until Tero told him of the horrors of the final door did Shigure realize just how low they had sunk. "You let a little girl watch another woman being raped? How dare you! I can't believe this, you sick bastard!"_

 _Tero blinked before stepping away from the enraged interrogator. "Shigure, she's a prisoner, breaking her was our job and I finally succeeded. I broke the little spitfire. Do you know how excited that makes me? After days of trying, I finally found her weakness and now we'll have all the information we wanted."_

 _Shigure angrily turned to Tero. "How can you stomach knowing what you did? How can you look at her and not see the bruises your fingers left on her neck? How can you not see the terror in her eyes whenever you draw near? How can you live with the fact that you've taken such an innocent soul and shredded it? I can't live with my actions, Tero. I haven't slept since the day we used the water on her. I can't live my life like this."_

 _Tero stepped back from Shigure. "What are you saying? You're going to defect?"_

 _Shigure looked away. "Yes. Everything has changed Tero, everything. Before this, before her, we were beating back the enemy; now all I can see is her eyes and that spirit. I can't stay here or I'll kill myself."_

 _Tero sighed. "Why are you telling me this? I should report you."_

" _But you're not going to. I'm leaving and I want you to come with me. We can take Naru and leave. I know she got underneath your skin too."_

 _Tero shook his head. "Never. I am a loyal Iwa shinobi and I follow orders."_

 _Shigure shook his head. "I'm an interrogator, you can't lie to me Tero. You cling to your orders, but deep down you know this is wrong. We can leave and never look back."_

 _It was Tero's turn to look away from Shigure's gaze. "Iwa is all I've ever known Shigure and I refuse to back out now."_

 _Shigure nodded. "Then it can't be helped. I'm leaving tonight and if Naru's alone in her cell then I'm taking her with me."_

 _Tero locked eyes with Shigure. "She won't be. Leave Shigure. I'll give you a two day head start before I report your absence."_

" _You'll change your mind eventually and by then it might be too late."_

 _Tero shook his head. "I'm sticking with my decision. I am loyal and she's nothing more than a prisoner."_

 _Shigure grabbed a black cloak before turning to look at his fellow torturer once more. "Keep telling yourself that Tero and one day you might actually believe it."_

 _Shigure took off into the night just as Sakumo's rescue team arrived at the fort._

 _Tero walked the short way to Naru's cell and saw the girl lying pitifully on the cold floor. He watched her whimper in her sleep and scream silently. He entered the room and saw her open those eyes that seemed to stare into his soul and he couldn't tear his gaze away from the bruises along her neck. Tero tried to convince himself that he didn't feel any guilt from his actions and even as he said those words out loud, he knew he was wrong._

 _End Flashback…_

Sakumo held Naru close and glided through the trees until they were a few miles away from the ruins of the fort. They had to stop and check over Naru. Plus, Minato was anxious to see if she was alright. Sakumo tightened his grip around the girl and wondered if he should tell Minato about the would-be rapists.

He momentarily looked back to see Kakashi jumping from branch to branch behind Kushina and knew if it was his child he would want to know everything that happened. No matter how painful or angry it made him. Naru whimpered in his arms and squirmed fitfully in her sleep, her features twisting in whatever pain her mind was letting her feel. Sakumo couldn't help but wonder why her bloodlimit wasn't healing her.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

This was bad and when I mean bad, I mean really bad. Naru was unconscious and I could tell from the small whimpers and flinches that she was in a lot of pain. If we were going to get anywhere we had to set up camp and check her over. Dad knew this and I knew this. It was our only hope of making it back to Konoha in one piece.

I was worried for more than one reason. I wasn't naïve and knew there would be Iwa shinobi following us. The simple fact they knew we were going to be slowed down by Naru's injuries would give them enough hope they could catch us. It was also stupid of them to pass up the opportunity of catching the White Fang of Konoha and Namikaze Minato. Kushina, Naru and I would just be extra bonuses for the capture. We had to be diligent and had to make sure Naru was healed. I couldn't help but wonder why Kyuubi wasn't healing her.

Dad raised his hand and pointed to the forest floor. We were stopping here for now; just long enough to give Naru basic first aid and send a summons back to the village. We weren't going to make it back all the way to Konoha with Naru in the condition she was in. It was safer and saner to have a Medic Nin waiting for us inside the borders of Fire Nation. We all landed onto the soft forest floor and waited, scanning the clearing before declaring it safe.

Dad looked at us. "We've got to stop here and take care of Naru. We'll just have to be cautious while we see about her. Kakashi, make bedding for her out of anything you can find."

I nodded and began taking everyone's blanket from their packs and setting up a small nest for Naru. Minato-sensei had already gone to find water and Kushina began helping Dad lower Naru onto the blankets. As Naru's back touched the blanketed ground her eyes finally opened and she blinked blearily before looking around her and laying her head back down. Minato-sensei had returned and walked over and kneeled beside her head, gently stroking her cheek.

I could tell he was thinking the same thing I was, she looked horrible.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Minato stroked Naru's cheek before locking eyes with Sakumo. "I'll send a toad back to Konoha."

Sakumo nodded. "Send another one to Tsunade. I'm pretty sure the Third sent Jiraiya after her, but just in case he didn't, I think it's wise to let her know what's going on. Last I heard she was in Wave, so she's closer to us than Konoha. Tell her to meet us at the old outpost town right inside Fire Nation borders. She'll know where it's at. Make sure to give her a full report of Naru's visible injuries."

Minato nodded and bit his thumb to perform the summoning jutsu. Two toads appeared and after a few short instructions, they disappeared into the night. Kakashi and Kushina hovered slightly behind the two working men as they began checking her over.

Anger coursed through Minato's veins as he looked at his daughter's dirty and swollen face. He turned to his student. "Kakashi, I need you to make a wash cloth so we can clean her up a little bit."

Kakashi nodded and removed the katanas from his back before he began cutting strips of cloth from one of his shirts. Kushina placed the water Minato had found beside him, warming it with her chakra. Minato smiled at her before gently soaking one of the strips of cloth and bringing it to Naru's face. The dirt, grime and blood began to come off easily, but the little flinches Naru would make every time the cloth neared her jaw told him everything he needed to know.

He gripped the cloth hard as he put it back into the water, his mind burned with hatred for the people who hurt his baby. His nails dug deep into the palms of his hands and blood welled from the cuts. Kushina gently placed a hand on Minato's shoulder. She sighed before kneeling down and taking another strip of cloth and cleaning off the other side of Naru's swollen face.

Sakumo began checking Naru's shoulder to see how badly dislocated it was. He quickly took out a kunai and cut Naru's sleeve off of the shirt, giving him a good view of the sunken and discolored portion of her shoulder. He gently touched it, causing Naru to groan in her sleep. Sakumo knew it was going to hurt a whole lot more in a minute when he tried to put it back into position. Normally he wouldn't even try to pop the shoulder back in place, but they couldn't travel two days with Naru in such pain. It would only slow them down and make her miserable.

Sakumo sighed before letting out a low whistle; his four faithful ninken appeared instantly and waited for his orders. He dismissed everyone but Shiri. The female ninken whined as she saw Naru's condition and Sakumo scratched her behind the ears. "Go rest Shiri, I'll need you later." Shiri nodded and lay off to the side, constantly watching the entire scene with a calculating eye.

Kakashi watched the three adults take care of Naru while he got busy setting up a perimeter. They were most likely going to end up spending a few hours here until they stabilized Naru and he couldn't let them get caught off guard. He reached into his weapons pouch and pulled out three of the conductors. The metal balls gleamed slightly as he rolled them around in his hand before mentally mapping out a triangular pattern in the clearing. He had experimented with the conductors and found out he could maintain an electric barrier that would shock anyone who stepped over them with a couple hundred watts of electricity.

It was an excellent defense tactic and it was also helping Kakashi build up his chakra reserves. He could turn them on and off depending on how much chakra he put into main conductor.

He quickly set up the bottom two conductors before walking the length of the clearing and setting up the tip of the triangle. Shiri watched him closely before turning her attention back to the three adults. Kakashi stepped away from the final conductor and pulled out the main conductor before channeling his chakra into the metal ball. Shiri turned again and watched in fascination as the three conductor points let out strands of electrical chakra and connected themselves to each other. The ground outlining the triangle glowed slightly before becoming encased in darkness once more. Kakashi nodded, seemingly pleased with his work and walked back over to the group.

* * *

Minato and Kushina finished cleaning off Naru's face and began working on her arms, making sure to stay clear of the dislocated shoulder. They cleaned off as much as they could before dropping the makeshift rags into the warm water. Sakumo looked at Naru once more before turning to Minato. "We need to pop her shoulder back into the socket."

"That's going to hurt, Sakumo, and I don't think we'll be able to keep her quiet." Kushina nodded in agreement.

"I know, but we can't keep moving her with a dislocated shoulder. That would hurt her worse than anything we could do."

Minato sighed. "Okay, let's do it. Should I wake her up first?"

Sakumo nodded. "We need to wake her up and let her see that she's with us. I'd hate to have her go into shock because she thinks she's back with them."

Minato leaned close to Naru and very gently ran his fingers through her too short hair before softly trying to wake her up. Kushina watched the gentleness he used and it struck a chord in her heart; her lover made an excellent father.

Minato whispered into Naru's ear. "Wake up sweetie. Open your eyes for daddy and I'll make it better. Please, just wake up for daddy."

Naru's eyes fluttered and Minato's heart swelled with relief. He continued to coax her awake and finally her blue eyes fully opened to look into his.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

It hurts to think.

It hurts to move and it hurts to feel.

I don't even know if it's physical pain or mental pain. All I know is that it is pain. I hate pain. I tried ignoring the ringing in my ears and the soft words I could barely make out, but the more I tried to ignore them, the louder they got. I knew they were important, but I couldn't remember why. It wasn't until I opened my eyes and looked at something besides stone that I realized and remembered.

My eyes frantically searched before finding the faces around me. Dad looked like he had just been told he was going to become Hokage. I tried to speak, but searing pain stopped me cold.

Dad's eyes watered slightly before becoming hard as steel. "Don't try to talk Naru. We think your jaw is broken and if you talk then you'll be in a lot of pain. We're going to take good care of you, you just wait."

I couldn't smile at him to let him know I understood. So instead I gingerly lifted my hand and weakly squeezed the hand that was stroking my cheek.

Sakumo-sensei caught my attention next. His eyes were filled with relief as he pulled his mask down and smiled at me. "Naru, your shoulder was dislocated and if you move it you'll be in a lot of pain. I'm sure you're in a lot of pain already, but we've got to pop it back into place. We're going to put you under a genjutsu until we get you to a Medic Nin, that way you can sleep without pain. I want you to blink once if you understand."

I blinked for him and was rewarded with another smile. "Good girl. Now close your eyes and everything will be over shortly. You'll be back home and safe."

I blinked once more, but stopped him by lifting my uninjured hand and gently grasping Dad's hand once more. I lifted up the hand and formed a very sloppy sign. "Love you."

Dad took my hand and gently kissed it. "Love you too."

Sensei performed the seals for the genjutsu and my mind become wonderfully blank once more.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo nodded before looking at Minato. "Let's get this over with. I've done this once before and it should be easy to just pop right back in."

Minato nodded in understanding. "What do we do?"

"I need you three to hold her body while I pull her arm up to put it back into place."

Kakashi moved to kneel beside Minato and Kushina and together they got a strong grasp on Naru's torso. Sakumo nodded to all three of them before beginning to rotate Naru's arm in a circle. After the first rotation, he checked the joint before sighing and tugging the arm outwards and rotating. A nice 'pop' filled the clearing as the bone slipped back into its original position.

Sakumo smiled at the pale Minato before rotating Naru's arm again to make sure it was in and wouldn't hinder her later. They would have Tsunade look at it too, just in case.

Kushina let go of Naru and sighed in relief. "What now?"

Sakumo looked up at the stars before answering. "We can rest here for a few hours tonight and we'll move out in the morning. It's a good day and a half travel to where we're going and we're going to try and run it straight through. This will be the last stop we make for a while."

Minato didn't move from his spot beside Naru. Instead he took off his Chunin vest and laid it over her before lying down beside her. His eyes never left her form, as if he was afraid she would vanish into thin air.

Kushina stood and popped her back. "How are we doing watches tonight?"

Sakumo sighed tiredly. "I'll take the first one and then I'll wake Kakashi for the next one. You can take third watch and Minato will take the final one."

Kushina nodded and rested her head against her pack, away from Minato and Naru, but still within Kakashi's triangle.

Sakumo yawned before watching Kakashi walk the triangle restlessly, his eyes flicking back to Naru every few minutes. Finally Sakumo called his son over to him. "Kakashi, come here."

Kakashi tensed before walking over and sitting beside his father, but instead of looking at his father, he looked at the twin katanas lying beside each other near his pack. "You need to sleep Kakashi."

Kakashi nodded. "I know, but I'm too wired up. We actually got her back."

Sakumo smiled and nodded before pushing Kakashi to lie across his legs. The boy scowled up at his father. "You expect me to sleep with your knee in the middle of my back?"

Sakumo rolled his eyes before shifting Kakashi's body to where just his head rested against Sakumo's legs. "If you're not going to sleep then you have to at least lie down and stop pacing. You're making me want to pace."

Kakashi nodded before looking up and watching the stars twinkle overhead. "Dad?"

"Hmm?"

"What did they do to Naru?"

Sakumo sighed and his mind went back to the image of those three men holding her down. He closed his eyes before answering. "I'm not sure the extent of the damage yet. We'll know as soon as we get her to a medic."

Kakashi nodded and as he watched the stars, his eyes drifted closed. He shifted in his sleep and rolled onto his stomach. Sakumo smiled before focusing on the sounds of the forest around him.

* * *

Tsunade shook her head and laughed as she heard Jiraiya's story. "So Minato has a little accident running around?"

Jiraiya didn't find it funny. "I find it suspicious that this girl just appears out of nowhere right when Minato's becoming a popular and powerful Jounin. Hell, he could even be Hokage if he plays his cards right."

Tsunade rolled her eyes. "Has the girl asked for anything? Has she demanded Minato to pay for some outstanding debts? It doesn't sound like that Jiraiya. It sounds like she just wants to know her father."

Jiraiya sighed before deciding it would be in his best interest to drop the subject with Tsunade. He went to change the subject when a knock at the window caught his attention. One of the messenger toads was sitting outside the window patiently waiting to be let in.

Tsunade opened the window and grabbed the toad. "Tsunade-hime, I have a message for you from Minato."

Tsunade nodded before listening to the orders and the injury report. After thanking the toad she turned to Jiraiya. "We've got an outpost to get to."

Jiraiya nodded and helped Tsunade pack her bags.

* * *

The Third yawned and rubbed his eyes as he looked over the latest ANBU mission reports. War was horrible and the missions were getting even bloodier. He stopped reading the bloody stories and paced around his office before looking out his window at the sleeping village below. His eyes were trained on the outside world, but his mind was miles away with Naru and the rescue team.

If Sakumo found Naru then this could be the mission to put him back into the good graces of the villagers, not to mention Naru would be safe in the village. Sarutobi sighed before pacing the floor once more. A tap echoed throughout the office. The Third blinked in shock before opening the window and letting the messenger toad into the office.

"Hokage-sama, I have a report from Minato."

The Third nodded, not letting himself get too overjoyed yet. "Report."

"Uzu Naru has been found and is safely with the rescue team."

The Third let out a sigh of relief before smiling. "Is she okay?"

"Negative sir, she has obvious signs of torture and they don't know her mental state as of now."

The Third nodded once more and told the toad to continue his report. The happy man never noticed the dark shadow quickly disappear from outside the window.

* * *

Danzo smiled before dismissing his spy and pacing the room, his mind reeling from the information he had just been given. He hadn't known Naru had been captured, nor had he known Sakumo was leading the rescue team to get her back. Danzo wanted Naru more than anything in the entire world. He couldn't stop thinking about how powerful she would be if the right person trained her.

Sakumo wasn't the right person for that. He would never get her to her full potential like Danzo and his Root ANBU could. Danzo pulled out a scroll and began writing. As soon as that girl returned to the village he would get Sakumo to sign over his teaching responsibilities to him.

* * *

Sakumo tensed as he felt the foreign chakra come close to the clearing. His heart pumped hard against his chest as he watched the woods around him for any sign of the enemy. Kakashi stirred against his legs, but Sakumo gently whispered for him to feign sleep so they would have the surprise over whoever it was. Minato and Kushina both stirred as well, but stayed as still as they could.

To any outsider it would look like Sakumo and Shiri were the only ones awake. Finally a man stumbled out of the woods with a rock proudly stamped onto the metal of his forehead protector. Sakumo noticed that the man was a little bit disoriented but at the same time aware of everything around him. The Iwa shinobi stopped as soon as he saw Sakumo and the others. His face twisted into a feral grin as he took a few steps closer to the clearing.

Kakashi watched as he stepped closer and closer to the electric barrier created by his conductors. The enemy couldn't see it, but Kakashi knew it was there. As the man moved closer, Kakashi gingerly reached into his front pocket to take the main conductor out.

The enemy shinobi finally called out to Sakumo. "Leaf scum! This is possibly the stupidest thing I've ever seen any shinobi of Leaf do. You're practically right out in the open and very close to the fort you just destroyed. Why in the world would you stop here? Idiots the lot of ya."

Sakumo grinned before answering back. "I think you're all talk and no bite. I don't even have to get up to defeat you, so why don't you come a little closer?"

Sakumo knew Kakashi had set up a perimeter, he could feel the barely there tinge of electrical chakra in the air. The Iwa shinobi walked closer still and ignored the warning bells going off inside his head. As soon as his foot crossed the electrical barrier Kakashi shot another couple of hundred watts of electricity into the main conductor and watched as the enemy shinobi twitched from the current running throughout his body.

Kakashi stopped pumping chakra into the conductors and watched as the electrocuted body of the enemy dropped to the floor and twitched once more before stilling completely. Kakashi sat up as did Kushina and Minato. They all shared a look before turning to Sakumo.

"We've got to get out of here before more stumble upon us."

Everyone nodded and began gathering their materials to stuff into random packs. At this point it didn't matter what went where as long as it was picked up and packed away.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

Minato-sensei gently lifted Naru up and shifted her in his arms before turning to Dad and handing her off. "Sakumo, I want you to carry her. If we meet another Iwa squad then I want to tear them apart. You take her and Kakashi and get out of there."

Dad sighed before shifting Naru to a comfortable position in his arms. "You know I'm not leaving you behind regardless of what we meet. We're all making it home, Minato."

Sensei nodded before turning to check over the clearing. Dad gave the signal and we took to the trees once more.

Dad set a fast pace and at first I was doing okay, but I knew that I would eventually have problems with keeping up. The pace was too fast and my legs weren't long enough to keep up. I sighed in annoyance before pumping chakra into my tiring legs and nearly missing the next branch.

I caught myself before reworking my footing and getting back on track. Naru was still under the genjutsu. Dad hadn't wanted her to be in pain while we traveled and the genjutsu was the only option we had left. Sensei was angry and I couldn't tell if he was angry at himself or at the shinobi that had hurt Naru. I had a feeling that it was a little bit of both.

Dad turned to look back at me for a few seconds before turning back to the branches in front of him. I knew he was wondering how long I would last. I was determined to not become a burden so soon and simply ignored his look and concentrated on my footing and breathing. We wouldn't stop again until we were away from Iwa borders.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Tsunade sighed as the sun began to rise from behind the hills ahead of her. They had traveled all night to get to the outpost town and she was feeling the exhaustion seeping into her bones. She sighed before sipping her cup of tea and watching the sun from the window of the old house they set up camp in. She already spent a majority of her time making sure the old house could be used as a suitable hospital.

It would do until they got Naru into Konoha. Jiraiya walked to stand beside her and watched as she mentally made a checklist of everything they were going to need for Naru's healing process.

Jiraiya interrupted her thoughts. "Tsunade, finish setting up in the morning. It'll be a day before they get here and if you're exhausted then you're no good to the girl."

Tsunade rolled her shoulders and stretched. "I'm almost finished here and then I'll sleep. I've got to make sure everything is together and ready to go."

Jiraiya nodded before turning away from the window and going to lie down in one of the other rooms. He still didn't like the idea of Minato having a daughter just pop out of thin air and he intended to get to the bottom of the mystery surrounding the girl.

* * *

Rafu sat in his living room and nursed his cup of sake as he thought about the blonde haired comrade he had left behind enemy lines. His heart was heavy and his mind was racked with guilt. No matter what he told himself, no matter how much he tried to lie to himself, no matter how loudly he screamed the lie he was telling himself, he knew the truth.

He knew and it ate him up inside. If he would have just left Sakumo alone, Naru might not have been captured. Rafu stood up on uneasy legs and walked over to the picture on his wall, the same one he had toasted just weeks before. The smiling face suddenly looked cold to Rafu, cold and accusing. Rafu dropped to his knees and screamed.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

A kunai stuck into the tree trunk beside me. I blinked in shock before turning slightly to see the figures behind us. Kushina and Minato-sensei both stopped and got into defensive positions. I unsheathed _Hanshou_ and got ready for the attack. Shiri snarled at the Iwa shinobi before crouching low and preparing to pounce.

Dad hoisted Naru over his shoulder before pulling out his tanto and holding her securely in place with his unoccupied arm. We waited quietly for them to reveal themselves. We knew it wasn't the smartest idea to try and out run them. We wouldn't make it far. Slowly five figures appeared from the trees, all wearing Iwa forehead protectors. The leader of the group was a female that had three scars running across her face from cheek to chin.

She snarled before circling her group. "Well, I knew we'd find you sooner or later. My comrades were in that fort you destroyed and all of you will pay for the lives lost at Fort Kei."

Dad crouched low to the branch and prepared to defend as the five figures began squaring off, deciding who they were taking on. A tall brown haired main missing his right ear smirked at me before getting into an offensive position in front of me. The Kunoichi let out a shout and they attacked.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Minato and Kushina instantly blocked the Iwa shinobi from advancing to where Sakumo and Naru were. The three male shinobi stood in front of them, all sporting sneers as they tried to get around the two Leaf shinobi. Kushina took two kunai out of her weapons pouch and twirled them around her fingers before jumping to meet her opponents. Minato was just a step behind her, already gathering his chakra for the Rasengan.

The three shinobi scattered in all directions as Kushina landed before them and slashed with her kunai, giving Minato the distraction to come in with his jutsu. Minato Shunshined behind a dark haired shinobi before plunging his arm through the man's back. A scream echoed through the forest and the dead body dropped to the grass below. Kushina was already chasing down one of the other dark haired men and was gaining on him fast.

The man turned slightly and smirked before pulling out three bombs and tossing them behind him and directly at Kushina. The fiery red head blinked in surprise before instantly dropping from the branches to the ground. Once she landed on her feet she was instantly alert to the forest around her, her green eyes scanning for any sign of her target. A movement to the left caught her attention and she quickly tossed a handful of shuriken at the bushes.

The man jumped out of the bushes and away from the airborne weapons before landing in front of Kushina. They circled each other, staring the other down and daring the other to make the first move. Kushina smirked before rushing towards the man and round kicking towards his head. The man ducked down quickly and tried to kick her feet out from under her. Kushina jumped to avoid his swipe and landed a few feet away from him.

She growled before pouncing on him and tackling him to the ground. Kushina instantly began pounding the Iwa shinobi in the face, a sickening crack filled the clearing as she felt his jaw break underneath her punches. In his pain filled haze, the man beneath her overpowered her and switched their positions. Kushina looked up at the swollen face and struggled against the hand that had clamped around her mouth.

The shinobi made the mistake of slipping his fingers into her mouth while trying to hold her down. Kushina clamped down hard on the digits and watched as the man above her tried to pull his aching fingers out of her mouth. Using her legs, Kushina twisted her body and soon found herself back on top of the man. He struggled beneath her, but one quick knee to the groin stopped his struggling and gave her enough time to reach for a kunai and end the fight completely.

* * *

Minato chased after his opponent and watched as the man tried to lose him by jumping erratically from tree branch to tree branch. A part of Minato's brain realized the Iwa shinobi was leading him further away from the group and that wasn't a good thing. Minato decided to end the goose chase and smiled before performing the hand seals and making three clones. The original Minato stopped instantly on his branch and waited for his clones to chase the enemy back to him.

The Iwa shinobi quickly looked behind him and found nothing and that scared him a little. Namikaze Minato was known to be a genius and tricky. It didn't take much for the man to trip his opponents up and once Minato had his targets within his grasp then nothing could stop his wrath. For the first time since he had escaped from the falling walls of Fort Kei, the shinobi feared for his life.

Minato's clones ghosted above the unknowing man. They had to hand it to the man, he was smart enough to check all around him, but he never suspected an aerial assault. Then again, Iwa shinobi rarely spent their lives around trees and wouldn't be expected to remember the perks of having higher tree branches. One of the clones grinned before gaining speed and landing on the branch in front of the running man. The Iwa shinobi lost his balance and fell to the ground before catching himself by grabbing one of the lower branches. As soon as he hit the tree branch, another one of the clones landed on the branch right beside him and spooked him into losing his grip.

The Iwa shinobi hit the ground hard and gasped as pain shot up and down his spine. An overwhelming fear entered his chest as he realized he couldn't move his legs. The Iwa shinobi watched as the three clones dropped to the ground and began walking closer, he grinned before taking out a kunai and yelling into the night.

"I refuse to die by your hands Namikaze!"

The shinobi plunged the kunai into his heart, stopping the beating organ and ending his life. Minato's clones popped out of existence and the real Minato frowned as he was assaulted with the memories of the shinobi's suicide.

* * *

The shinobi with the missing ear snarled at Kakashi before rushing towards him. Kakashi just barely dodged away from the man's strike and was forced to jump away as he continued to try and strike at him.

He was moving too fast for Kakashi to keep up and it wouldn't be long before he caught the young Chunin. The shinobi kicked towards Kakashi's head, forcing him to duck low to the branch. Kakashi took the opportunity to slash the man's legs with his katana and roll off the branch to the next one.

The Iwa shinobi howled in pain before jumping to the lower branch with Kakashi and kicked at him, connecting with his stomach. The force of the kick caused Kakashi to fly back and collide with the hard trunk of the tree. Kakashi groaned in pain as his back connected with the tree trunk and his head flew back to collide with the hard bark. He blinked the spots from his eyes before quickly moving out of the way as a kunai flew through the air straight towards his throat.

Kakashi growled before trying to catch his breath and look for the enemy in the surrounding trees. He didn't have to wait long though; he could smell the blood pouring from the man's leg wounds. Kakashi had just barely missed the main leg arteries, but the blood flow was strong and led him right to the injured man.

Kakashi quietly snuck close to where the man had taken a short break to try and bandage his legs. The murmured curses told Kakashi that he was in a lot of pain. He knew he wasn't going to be able to overpower the other shinobi. Speed and strength just weren't on his side during this fight, but he was a genius. He could easily outsmart the man and play on his weaknesses.

Kakashi reached into his weapons pouch before fingering the metal conductors. Every person has reflexes and every person reacted in almost the same way because of their reflexes. Kakashi knew that if he threw something at the injured man his first instinct would be to jump away or try and swat the object away. With those injuries to his legs, the man wasn't going to do much jumping or he would lose even more blood.

Kakashi grinned before powering up the conductors enough to give a small static field. The negative energy of the conductor would attract to the positive energy in the man and effectively stick to the target, giving Kakashi the chance to end the fight.

The Iwa shinobi never knew what hit him when Kakashi jumped onto the branch beside him. "Catch!"

The Iwa shinobi blinked in surprise before watching the metal ball fly towards him in slow motion. He didn't even try to move. Instead he quickly tried to swipe the ball away, but the conductor ended up sticking to his arm. Kakashi smirked before powering the conductor up and hopping away as the man's body pulsed with electricity. Kakashi watched as he fell to the ground and twitched every few seconds.

* * *

Sakumo had watched the other battles around him for a while before the rest of his group were led away by their opponents. That left him and the female leader alone. Naru's unconscious form weighted Sakumo down, but not enough to where he wouldn't be able to defend or attack. He wouldn't be able to move as fast as he usually did, but he could still win. The female laughed before scanning Sakumo up and down with her eyes. Shiri growled even more and stood in front of Sakumo and Naru.

"What an honor for the White Fang of Konoha to be so far in Iwa borders. I'm going to enjoy beating you Hatake Sakumo, just like my boys are going to enjoy beating your team. The boy's your son isn't he? He has a bounty on his head that rivals the one Iwa placed on the sons of the Hokage. I'm sure he'll be just as valuable if he's a little scuffed up. That girl too. Rumor around Fort Kei was that she is actually Namikaze Minato's daughter. My, my, my, I could live a very happy woman after I defeat you and take them."

Explosions went off behind the woman and Sakumo took the opportunity to place Naru onto his back so he could free up both of his hands. He smiled when her arms tightened around his neck unconsciously. "Bring it sweetheart, because you're not laying a single hand on either of them as long as I'm still breathing."

The Kunoichi grinned before taking out a storage scroll and removing a katana from its depths. Sakumo held his tanto in front of him and didn't wait for the Kunoichi to make the first move. He instantly pushed chakra into his feet and jumped towards her. She wasn't expecting it and barely dodged the man's tanto from taking off her head. Sakumo quickly turned around and caught his balance before shifting Naru's weight on his back and blocking the swipe of the Kunoichi's katana.

The two weapons met in the air as both wielders tried to overpower the other. When they seemed matched, they both jumped away from each other to rethink their attacks. Sakumo scanned the Kunoichi up and down to see any weaknesses in her defense and he found none.

Biting back a curse he dodged as she tossed three kunai at him. Shiri pounced from the upper branches of the tree and tackled the woman to the next branch, she shoved the ninken away. Shiri snapped at her leg before proceeding to plow into the limb. The Kunoichi yelped in pain before slicing towards Shiri. Shiri snarled once more before disappearing.

Sakumo crouched low to the branch before watching the Kunoichi jump closer to him. He smiled when he noticed her favoring her left leg and silently thanked Shiri.

The White Fang of Konoha dropped to the ground and landed onto his feet. He had just enough time to place Naru on the ground before the Iwa Kunoichi jumped in front of him and swiped downward with her katana. Sakumo blocked with his tanto and smirked before kicking her hard in the left leg. She staggered in pain, giving Sakumo the opening to slice the length of her arm. She fell forward and Sakumo kneed her in the stomach and punched her in the jaw.

The Kunoichi spit out blood and held her bleeding arm before snarling at Sakumo and charging with her katana sticking straight out in front of her, ready to impale him with it. Sakumo swiftly stepped to the side and tripped the Kunoichi. She fell forward and onto her own katana. The Kunoichi looked up at Sakumo with blurred eyes and blood pooling around her and silently begged him to end her misery. He nodded and slit her throat with his tanto.

Everyone regrouped a few miles away from the sites of battle. No one sustained serious injuries, but Kakashi had a terrible headache from where his head collided with the tree. Sakumo cradled Naru in his arms and sighed before gently checking everyone over for injuries. Shiri limped slightly and Sakumo patted her head before dismissing her and promising her a treat when they returned to Konoha.

Minato noticed that Kakashi's chakra was low and he wasn't going to make the journey back without help.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

Dad was looking at me funny again; I knew my chakra reserves were low, dangerously low. As a seven-year-old shinobi I had nice chakra reserves, but they were nowhere near the level they had been when I was a Jounin and I sometimes overdid it in this body.

As soon as we got back to Konoha I was asking Sensei for chakra exercises. I couldn't keep such low chakra reserves and expect to still be able to function. Sensei walked over to me and sighed before kneeling in front of me.

"Come on 'kashi, your reserves are too low and you'll never be able to keep up."

I sighed, admitted defeat and didn't complain as I climbed onto his back. My head still ached and my body hurt too. Dad nodded before giving the signal and once more we were off for the final trek home.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Tsunade began watching the road leading into town as soon as noon hit. She knew the rescue team could be delayed, but she couldn't tear herself away from the window.

The Medic part of her wanted to be the first one to see them when they arrived so she could look over the injuries and the other part of her was anxious to see what Minato's daughter looked like. She had no doubt the girl would be adorable, just like Minato was at one time.

Tsunade smiled as a bird flew overhead. If his daughter, this Naru, took after him in the 'looks department' then the poor man was going to be in trouble when the girl started dating. She stopped laughing long enough to see four figures appearing on the horizon. Her eyes widened as she realized it was the rescue team.

"Jiraiya! They're here!"

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

Tsunade ran out of one of the houses with Jiraiya close behind her. I had regained a lot of my chakra back right before we entered Fire County borders and practically begged Sensei to let me go back to running. He eventually let me, but he watched me like a hawk the entire time. The man was trying to tear himself between worrying about me and Naru and it was seriously stressing him out.

Dad cradled Naru close to his chest and greeted Tsunade as the Slug Princess made her way to us. She nodded to him before looking over Naru once and pointing to the house she had just came out of.

"I've set up shop in there. Take her to the first door on the left and place her in the bed."

Dad nodded. "Do you want me to release the genjutsu now or later?"

Tsunade looked him in the eye. "Now. I'm going to need her to talk so I can find out where she hurts."

Dad nodded and we made our way into the old house.

Naru's makeshift hospital room was a fairly large room with a window facing the road. Dad placed her underneath the covers as I began looking around the room. It was filled with bottles of medicines and jars of salves. Tsunade walked in and smiled before walking over to Naru.

Sensei walked into the room and watched closely as Dad woke Naru up. At first Naru was a little bit disoriented before finally realizing where she was. Her jaw was still swollen, but she was putting weight on her arms, which meant the dislocated shoulder had been set correctly.

Tsunade turned to everyone in the room. "Okay, everyone out. I've got to check her over."

Dad went to turn around before stopping and grabbing Tsunade's arm. He looked towards me and Sensei before sighing. "Tsunade, make sure you do a full examination on her."

Tsunade's eyes widened before turning to look back at Naru, who had gone deathly still. Sensei made a low whining noise before taking a step forward. Tsunade shook her head. "Go outside, Minato, and wait. You'll get all your answers as soon as I finish my examination."

Dad walked over and placed his hand on Sensei's shoulder. "Come on, Minato, and I'll tell you everything."

I walked out after them, only stopping to look back at Naru once. Tsunade smiled at me before waving me on.

Dad sat Sensei down at the table in the dining room at the end of the hall and began talking. I walked into the room and Dad stopped talking before looking over at me. "Kakashi, I need to talk to Minato alone right now."

I sighed before walking out of the room. A part of me wanted to eavesdrop on their conversation, but I knew if I did that I would get into a whole lot of trouble. Dad had that tone of voice that dared me to disobey him. I was stuck with nothing to do. Naru was with Tsunade and Dad was with Sensei. The only person left was Kushina, but she was lost in thought standing outside the front door.

Since we had found Naru, she had been awfully quiet and knowing Uzumaki Kushina for as long as I had, she was never quiet. It was something Naru inherited from her. I walked outside and leaned against the wall of the house.

She turned at me and smiled sadly. "As soon as Tsunade's finished with Naru and I talk to Minato, I'm heading back to Konoha."

I blinked. "You can't just go by yourself."

She nodded. "I know, but Jiraiya is here and I asked if he would go back with me. I just need to get back to the village."

I looked up at her. "You're not leaving Sensei are you?"

Kushina blinked before shaking her head. "No, but I need to think some things out and I can't do that here. I'm due home anyway."

She turned and walked back into the house as I sat down on the grass covered ground. She had said 'home.' She was planning on going back to Whirlpool. I sighed and leaned my head against the cool wall. It would all work out; it had to.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

For a few awkward minutes I stared at Tsunade and wanted to jump up and hug her before remembering that she didn't know who I was. It was surreal seeing the same woman that had died to save me, alive and still as young looking than ever. Even though my head was still pounding and my jaw felt like needles were sticking in it, I couldn't help but wonder if I could get away with calling her 'granny.'

She smiled at me before sitting on the edge of the bed and gently brushing my short hair away from my face. I flinched away from her touch and looked down at the bed, strangely feeling ashamed at my action. Tsunade just smiled sadly and removed her hand. "Don't worry, you're safe now Naru. No one is going to do you any harm."

I knew I was safe, but there was that underlying fear that this was all another genjutsu used by Tero or a dream my mind had come up with. I honestly didn't think I could take it if it was, I had already seen too much and had my spirit broken into pieces, pieces I didn't know if I could put back together.

I turned away from Tsunade and looked out the window before seeing sunlight for the first time in days. I never even noticed I was crying until Tsunade gently shushed me and told me everything was going to be fine. She didn't make a move to touch me though, and for that I was grateful. I couldn't forget the touches of those men. I could still feel his body heat and smell him on my skin. I needed to get clean.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Tsunade watched the young girl cry silently before attempting to comfort her. It was strange to think of this little girl as Minato's daughter.

Tsunade sighed before gathering her healing chakra to scan Naru's body. "Naru, I'm going to scan your body and check you over for injuries okay?"

Naru didn't answer, but instead nodded. Tsunade's hands glowed green as she began scanning the small body in front of her. Mentally she took record of Naru's injuries: dehydration, slight malnutrition, multiple fractured bones that were barely healed, internal injuries to her lungs and heart and almost no chakra flowing freely throughout her body. Tsunade sighed as she checked over Naru's chakra system.

It was strange to say the least. Two different sets of chakra reserves definitely caught the medic-nin's attention. Another strange observation was the lack of chakra flowing through her body, which could only mean one thing; her chakra had been sealed off while in captivity. Minato or Jiraiya would have to unseal it after Tsunade finished healing her. The rush of all that built of chakra flowing back through the body could cause more harm to the already injured girl. It was safer and saner to have Naru completely healthy before unsealing her chakra.

Naru squirmed underneath her glowing hands and brought Tsunade's attention back to the matter at hand. The Slug Sannin smiled before continuing her examination and stopping at the girl's feet. Though using chakra was a great way to examine for internal injuries and heal them, Tsunade knew she would have to physically check Naru for sexual assault. First she needed to heal that jaw so Naru could talk to her.

"I'm going to heal your jaw now, Naru, and then you'll be able to talk to me."

Naru nodded slowly and stilled as Tsunade prodded the jaw gently to tell exactly where the fracture was. The small form tensed and tears of pain spilled out of her eyes as Tsunade began healing the jaw. The swelling receded and Naru experimentally moved her jaw before finally speaking in a raspy, unused voice.

"Thank you Tsunade."

Tsunade smiled. "So you know who I am?"

Naru nodded and Tsunade laughed. "Well, I guess I don't have to introduce myself now. Naru I've got to finish healing you, so just tell me where it hurts and I'll try and fix it okay? First, let me start an IV for your dehydration."

Naru nodded before coughing and lying back down on the bed as the IV was inserted into her arm. Tsunade's hands glowed once more as she began mending fractures together and healing internal injuries.

* * *

Minato wouldn't meet Sakumo eyes as they sat together in the dining room after kicking Kakashi out. "You asked Tsunade to give her a full examination, why Sakumo?"

Sakumo sighed before running a hand through his silver bangs. "When I got to Naru she wasn't alone in her cell."

Minato's face paled and his fists clenched hard enough to turn the knuckles white. "What do you mean she wasn't alone?"

"There were men in the cell with her, Minato, and they were trying to…" Sakumo took a breath and tried to shake away the image of his student underneath the man, "they were trying to rape her."

Minato placed his face into his hands. "No, no, no, Sakumo, no. She's just a child, no, no. No one would do that to a child, right? Sakumo no, not my baby no, no."

Sakumo held up his hand. "Minato, calm down for a minute okay? I stopped him before he raped her, but I just wanted to make sure it hadn't already happened before we got there."

Minato looked up at Sakumo with pained eyes. "I wasn't fast enough to save her from this Sakumo. We weren't fast enough. What kind of a father am I? I couldn't do anything for her. Hell, she got captured because of who I am."

Sakumo sighed. "Minato listen; Naru's fine and alive. Don't beat yourself up over this. You didn't know this was going to happen and you couldn't stop it from happening. She is a Kunoichi, a ninja, she wanted to do this and we let her."

Minato ran his hands through his hair and jumped up from his seat. "I know she's a ninja and I know there was always the chance she could get captured, but why did it have to be because of me? Why is my name such a burden to her? Why did my little girl have to be injured because of me?"

Sakumo closed his eyes briefly. "I asked similar questions after Kakashi was attacked by those Chunin. I hate to admit it, but our children will suffer because of who we are and the only thing we can do is to get stronger so we can protect them and to train them to get stronger. You say you weren't fast enough to save her; then get faster Minato. I feel like I'm not strong enough to protect Kakashi, so I'm going to get stronger. This experience will stick with Naru for years. She may never get fully over this, but as long as we are behind her we can help her heal. I know nothing I say will put your mind at ease about this, but I refuse to let you beat yourself up over this. Naru getting captured was not your fault. The only one to blame for that was Rafu for opening his big mouth. All that matters is that she's back. We got her back Minato."

Minato sighed and sat back down. "Sakumo thanks."

Sakumo blinked, surprised at his friend's sudden change in demeanor. "You're welcome Minato, but I've got to go talk to Kakashi now."

Minato nodded and watched as Sakumo got up and went to find his son. Minato leaned back in his chair. The anger was still there, but it was coupled with something else, something new and raw. "Get faster you say?"

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

Dad found me still outside sitting by the wall and watching the dirt blow in the wind. He sat beside me and plucked a blade of grass from the patch beside him.

I knew he wasn't going to start the conversation so I did. "Dad, what happened with Naru?"

Dad dropped the blade of grass before answering. "Naru was tortured Kakashi. I don't know how or with what, but she was tortured and interrogated. Iwa isn't known to be kind to female prisoners and I'm sure you learned that in the academy."

I knew what dad was hinting at. I had learned about potential T&I tactics used by enemies. Rape was never far from the minds of captives, males or females. It was a horrible tactic that was used too many times. "Did they rape Naru?"

"I don't know Ka-chan, but I do know I'm going to need your help after we get Naru back home. She's going to need time to recover and she's going to need lots of love."

I eye-smiled at him. "Thank you for being honest with me and not trying to cover it up."

He ruffled my hair. "Kakashi, as much as I want to shelter you and keep you away from all of this, I know I can't. It could have easily been you there and I don't want my sheltering to cause you any pain. I've decided to be honest with you when you ask questions like this. You won't be seven forever."

I sighed and just listened to the wind blow through the trees.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Tsunade finished examining Naru fully and stepped out of the room before closing the door. Minato was instantly at her side with wide eyes, waiting for whatever she was going to say. Sakumo and Kakashi walked up as well, along with Jiraiya and Kushina.

Minato looked deep into Tsunade's eyes watching for the slightest lie. "Well?"

Tsunade smiled. "Though she's definitely been tortured, she wasn't raped. She had multiple hairline fractures along her arm and her jaw but I healed those. Her mouth will have to be worked on when we get back to Konoha. They either pulled some of her teeth or knocked them out. Her heart sustained some damage as did her lungs, but those can be fixed when we get back to Konoha too. You did a good job on her shoulder and it should heal quickly. The only other thing is that her chakra seems off."

Sakumo nodded. "She has a bloodlimit and it gives her another set of chakra reserves and a fast healing ability. What's wrong with her chakra?"

Tsunade looked interested before answering. "She hardly has any. I think they placed a seal over her chakra."

Jiraiya nodded. "You want me to see if I can unseal it?"

Tsunade nodded. "Yeah and if she has this healing bloodlimit then perhaps it could help with healing the rest of her injuries."

Jiraiya walked away to get his scrolls ready to remove the seal from Naru. Sakumo watched him go before turning back to Tsunade. "What about her mental state?"

Tsunade shrugged. "That's not something I can evaluate. It too will have to wait until we return to Konoha."

Sakumo nodded again. "Can we go in and see her?"

Tsunade shook her head. "After Jiraiya unseals her chakra and then you can visit with her."

* * *

Jiraiya grabbed his seal removal scrolls from his pack and walked back towards Naru's room with a heavy mind. It wasn't that he thought the girl was trying to pull something over on Minato; it was just suspicious she would appear out of nowhere. It didn't sit well with the Toad Sage and he wanted answers. He walked past the group gathered in the hall into the girl's room, her dull eyes flicked over to him instantly. He took in her dirty hair and still bruised neck before steeling his resolve.

"Well Naru, I'm Jiraiya and I'm going to take the seal off of you. Do you know where it is?"

Naru nodded slowly before touching the back of her head, Jiraiya nodded. "Yeah, that sounds like an easy place to put one. Just sit up and straighten your back while I draw the seals."

Naru nodded and did everything he asked. Jiraiya bit into his thumb and began drawing the complicated seals onto the scroll and onto her neck and forehead. Naru shivered and flinched every time Jiraiya touched her or breathed onto her neck.

He noticed and tried to not make her anymore uncomfortable than she already was. Once he finished getting the seals completed, he stepped back and gathered his chakra before performing the hand seals and slamming his hand onto the seal removal scroll.

Naru's body jerked slightly as the bloody seals began to move around the chakra seal and eat away at the seal until nothing was left. Red chakra enveloped Naru's body as it started flowing again. Naru swayed before passing out.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

"I never thought I would say this, but here it goes, it's good to actually hear you kit."

Everything hurt and burned. Plus, the annoying voice in the back of my head wasn't helping that headache of mine either. "Shut it fur-ball and get with the healing process."

Kyuubi was quiet for a minute before speaking. "I'm working on it, but you sustained a lot of damage and it's going to take me a little bit before everything is back in working order."

I opened my eyes to see Jiraiya staring at me intently. He silently walked over to the door and locked it. My heart began pounding loud against my chest, something wasn't right.

"Naru, I'm going to ask you a few questions before I leave and I want you to answer them truthfully."

I nodded, utterly confused at what the man was getting at.

"Minato is going to be a pretty important guy in a couple of years. He's got the potential to become Hokage. So why is he suddenly getting an illegitimate child? Where did you come from Uzu Naru? Or, better yet, where have you been for the past seven years?"

I blinked in shock at his rapid-fire questions. He wasn't even giving me time to answer. I wasn't feeling well and I couldn't stop comparing this to being interrogated.

"Tell the truth. You're just after his money or perhaps fame?"

I shook my head and finally spoke in my still raw voice. "No, I just wanted to know him."

Jiraiya rolled his eyes. "I really want to believe you sweetheart, but I've heard too many stories of junk like this happening to other people. I intend to take care of my student."

I felt tears prick my eyes. How dare he insinuate that I only wanted my dad for his money or fame! I didn't care if he was rich or not, I just wanted him. "You're wrong."

Jiraiya shook his head. "I'm not trying to be mean sweetie, but this is all too suspicious for my tastes. Where is your mother? Why didn't she try and contact Minato after you were born? I see holes in your entire story, Uzu Naru, and though you can't be denied as his child, you obviously have some other motive besides getting to know him."

I blinked back tears. "That's where you're wrong!"

I made my first mistake at that moment. I went to hit him and instead of blocking my punch, he pinned my arms above my head.

My mind instantly took me back to the cell. I could feel the cold stone against my back, the pain in my arms and that man hovering above me. I could feel his hot breath against my neck and I could feel my skin crawl. I could feel the tears falling down my swollen cheeks as he harshly caressed my body. I could feel them pinning my arms down, taking away my strength and making me feel helpless. I didn't like that feeling, I loathed that feeling. I couldn't stop the tears or the screams that left my lips as I relived that moment over in vivid detail. My heart pounded erratically against my chest and I could feel a sharp pain every time the muscle contracted.

That pain took me back to Tero and his chair of terror. The adrenaline shot and the aching ghost pains entered my mind as my body continued to send signals from my nerve endings to my brain. My entire body felt on fire and no amount of water could put it out. If it was possible, I screamed louder.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

The screams were what caught my attention first. Sensei was instantly trying to open the door, only to find it locked. Tsunade began beating on the door, yelling at Jiraiya. "Open the door now!"

The door didn't open and the yelling got louder. The sobs increased and Sensei got angrier. He finally kicked the door in and found Jiraiya holding Naru down as the girl screamed and writhed against his hands. Tsunade snarled in anger, but stayed away as she watched the red chakra whip out of the girl and overtake the room. Sensei didn't stop though. He pushed Jiraiya out of the way and began trying to calm Naru down.

Tsunade rounded on Jiraiya. "What the Hell were you thinking? What is going through your mind Jiraiya? She's a torture survivor and you obviously just caused an episode for a girl that was doing remarkably well! You idiot!"

Jiraiya picked himself up. "I didn't know she'd react like that, but I needed my answers!"

Tsunade punched him into the wall. "Well, I hope you got your answers because you're not getting near her again."

They both left the room, still arguing and yelling as they traveled outside. Kushina had entered the room and looked sadly over at Sensei talking to Naru in soothing tones before walking out of the door. Dad's eyes had hardened to steel as he swept out of the room behind Kushina. I walked closer to the bed and saw Naru still openly crying and begging the person to stop.

Sensei finally placed a gentle kiss on her forehead and begged her to wake up. Naru slowly opened her eyes and realized she wasn't with her torturers. She hiccupped and tried to move before screaming in pain.

Tsunade ran back into the room and instantly began checking Naru over. "Her bloodlimit is healing her at a remarkable rate, but it's not working fast enough on her heart. I'm going to have to heal that right now or she could go into cardiac arrest. The stress that was just inflicted on her heart caused it to worsen. Whatever they used on her heart caused severe damage and having a panic attack as intense as the one she just had only aggravated her injuries."

Sensei nodded and watched as Tsunade began healing the weakened organ. Tsunade watched in amazement as the red chakra healed Naru alongside her own green chakra. I was amazed that Naru hadn't completely passed out yet.

Tsunade stopped healing Naru and quickly pulled out a few rolls of bandages. "These bandages are reinforced with chakra and will help heal her other internal injuries while she sleeps. All we have to do is change them tomorrow and she should be good as long as she doesn't have another panic attack before she's completely healed."

Sensei nodded before helping Tsunade wrap Naru's torso in the bandages. I turned around after they started undressing her; apparently I had been forgotten yet again. I could still hear Naru whimpering and sobbing silently as they wrapped her body. Sensei shushed her gently as I turned around once they were through.

Dad's angry voice floated into the room. "Minato, get out here."

Sensei shot me a look before walking out of the room followed by Tsunade.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I turned to look at the sun that was slowly sinking beneath the clouds as Dad left the room. I had wanted to crawl into his arms so bad and just let him hold me. I needed to be held or hugged or something. I didn't like this feeling of coldness that had settled in my chest. I needed warmth and sunshine, not coldness.

I blinked the tears out of my eyes, but couldn't get them to stop completely. I had never felt so helpless and useless and that made me sick. I hated feeling like that, I hated being the victim. Kakashi walked closer to the bed and tried to eye smile at me, but every time he would try I would only sniffle louder and more tears would pour out of my eyes. I watched him for a few more minutes before wondering if he would be willing to hug me.

"'Kashi? Would you hug me please? I really need some type of contact right now or I might just go crazy."

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Kakashi blinked at Naru's request before looking at the IV line that ran to her hand and back to the bag on the hook. Seeing Naru's pleading face and hearing her broken voice were more than enough to convince him to do anything she wanted. Naru didn't smile as she watched Kakashi duck underneath her IV line before crawling into the bed with her. She couldn't sit up because of the pain that still wracked her body, but Kakashi improvised.

Kakashi simply lay beside her and wrapped his arm around her body. Naru coughed and whimpered a little before looking into Kakashi's eyes and mouthing 'thank you.'

Kakashi nodded before whispering into her ear. "I promised you that I would take care of you. I couldn't stop this, but I'll be damned before I let anything else happen to you. I promise Naru, I'm going to take care of you."

Naru choked back a sob before turning and laying her head beside Kakashi's, the tears falling freely now as he held her closer. Soon the gentle breathing of the two seven-year-olds lulled each other to sleep better than any lullaby could have.

Naru moved closer to Kakashi and somehow found his hand while asleep and had intertwined their fingers together. Kakashi still had his arm wrapped tightly around Naru, as if he was afraid she would be taken from him. They slept peacefully together while the adults argued in the room down the hall. Jiraiya angrily defending his reason for interrogating the girl to an equally angry Minato.

"Sensei, we just got her back from being in Iwa's hands and you try to interrogate her! Why don't you just leave her alone? Why is it so hard for you to believe that she just wants to know me? She's my daughter! The blood tests proved it!"

Jiraiya growled at his student. "I'm just trying to protect you Minato. I'm trying to be a good mentor and keep you from messing up your chances. There's no denying she's your child, but that's not my point!"

Minato punched the wall in anger before turning to Jiraiya. "Well, if being Hokage means I have to give Naru up then I don't want it. She's more important than anything right now."

Sakumo sighed. "Both of you stop arguing. You're not helping the situation at all. Jiraiya you said you were going back to Konoha right? Well, go on and head out because I think you've done enough here."

Jiraiya turned to Minato and sighed. "Minato, it's not that I don't like the girl. I just want to help you and make sure she's the real deal."

Minato wouldn't look at his sensei. "I understand, but my word should have been enough to convince you of the truth. I won't stay mad at you forever, but right now I don't think I can talk to you without hurting you."

Jiraiya sighed in resignation. "Fine, I'm heading out. Kushina are you ready?"

Minato blinked in surprise. "Kushina? You're leaving too?"

Kushina shouldered her pack. "Can we talk alone Minato?"

Minato nodded his head and followed Kushina outside. The moon overhead stood out against the dark sky, bathing both of them in the moonlight. "Kushina, are you leaving me?"

Minato's voice broke slightly with each syllable. Kushina laughed before reaching up and drawing him into a long kiss. "I would never leave you because of this. Remember, I told you a long time ago that I kind of liked you."

Minato smiled. "I believe you said four on a scale of ten."

Kushina smiled brightly. "Yep!" She sighed heavily before dropping her smile a little and growing serious. "I'm not leaving you because of Naru. In fact, it makes me want to love you more because of how sweet you are with her, but I can't ignore the fact that you hid her from me. You broke my trust and I need time to forgive that."

Minato looked away, regretting every moment of not telling his lover about his daughter. "Okay, I understand."

"Do you? I'm going back to Whirlpool for a few weeks."

Minato blinked in shock and tried to protest. "No Kushina…."

Kushina held up a hand. "Yes, I need time away from you if I'm going to forgive you. Don't worry Minato, I'll return, ready to get to know this little blonde that you hid from me."

Minato nodded. "I think that's going to be great. I'll have to keep her away from your bad influence though."

Kushina laughed. "Oh you can try Minato, but I'm determined to make her my apprentice in the ways of mischief."

Minato laughed before bidding her goodbye and nodding to the Sensei he was still mad at.

Sakumo ran a hand through his hair before walking back to Naru's room to see if she was doing any better. He quietly walked into the room and grinned as he saw the two seven-year-olds sleeping together on the bed. If Sakumo would have been a lesser man, he would have squealed like a teenage girl, but being the elite Jounin he was, he simply walked back into the hall and found Minato.

"Come see what I found." Minato smiled at the sing-song voice Sakumo was using before walking after his friend and into Naru's hospital room. Minato though, couldn't help but smile at the sweet scene.

He turned to Sakumo. "Don't they look cute together?"

Sakumo nodded before picking up a blanket from the table and laying it over the two Chunin before walking out of the room. "Come on Minato, let's let them sleep."

Minato sighed before walking out of the room, mumbling the entire way. "Dang, where's a camera when you need it?"

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

Strangely enough I was very warm and very comfortable when I woke up the next morning. I shifted slightly in the bed before realizing there was a warm body beside me, one that was curled up into my side and breathing evenly on my neck. I groggily opened my eyes to find a head full of blonde hair underneath my chin. I pulled back slightly and watched Naru sleep peacefully beside me, all of the past week's events rushing back to me at once.

Naru moved closer to me in her sleep and turned her head so I could see her face. Even with all of the fading bruises and dirt she was still the cute girl I had always known. Wait, did I just call her cute? I shook my head and tried to fight down the blush that was surely showing over the top of my mask.

Naru moved once more before opening her eyes and I was slightly surprised to see a matching blush rush across her features as well.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

Well, Kakashi actually hugged me and I could believe it. Just like I couldn't stop the blush as I realized he was still hugging me. It wasn't a bad feeling though, it was warm and different. Kakashi just wasn't a hugging type of person. He usually gave comfort through words and unusual actions. Maybe that's why it touched me so much he was willing to break that for me. I smiled before moving out of his arms, the slight twinge of pain barely registering in my mind as I moved.

Kyuubi had healed almost all of my body while I slept, but sometimes the ghost pains were still there. I guess it was better than still being injured. Dad and Sakumo-sensei walked into the room with matching smiles. Sensei had a particular gleam in his eyes that I didn't know if I liked or not.

"Good morning you two. Tsunade's given us the okay to move you Naru. We're leaving for Konoha this morning and then you'll spend some more time in the hospital."

I felt like making a face at those words, but I wasn't going to. I simply nodded my head and lay back down. I was still very tired.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

It didn't take long for Sakumo and Minato to get everything ready for the trek back to Konoha. The village was only a half-day's travel from the outpost town, but with Naru's weakened condition they wanted to be extra careful. Tsunade followed them back to Konoha, taking Kushina's place in the group and making sure Naru was still stable. Minato carried her on his back, spending the entire time trying to get her to talk to him.

Naru was still deathly quiet and it was unnerving to the shinobi. His Naru was supposed to be this loud little firecracker. He sighed. When they returned to Konoha Naru would undergo therapy, that was a given, but Minato dreaded the backlash from this. He knew as soon as the therapist started trying to get Naru to open up about her experiences that the memories were going to come back full force.

Minato promised himself right then and there on the road back home that he would help her in anyway. If she couldn't sleep then he wouldn't sleep. If she had nightmares then he would be there and hold her through them. He wasn't going to let her suffer alone.

The sun overhead shone beautifully as the rescue group finally made it into Konoha. Naru took one look at the gates and busted into tears.

"Home."

* * *

The Third sat in his office and read over the report turned in by Kushina and Jiraiya. The old man was ticked off at his student, but understood the man's good intentions. Jiraiya was just too stubborn for his own good.

One of the Chunin that guarded the front gates rushed into his office. "Hokage-sama! Uzu Naru's rescue team has returned."

The Third smiled before dismissing the shinobi. Naru was back in the village, weak but safe. The Hokage walked out into the Missions Room and turned to his ANBU guards. "Bring me Yamanaka Inoichi and tell him he has a new mission. I'll be at the hospital."

The ANBU guards nodded and disappeared from the room. Sarutobi began walking to the hospital. The ANBU would bring the man to him and Inoichi would be Naru's therapist. The mind-walker was young, but he was one of the best of the Yamanaka clan and the Third wasn't letting a second-rate therapist touch Naru. He needed someone he knew he could trust not to invade her mind, but instead heal her through other methods.

The Third nodded to himself. Yamanaka Inoichi would be perfect for the job.


	25. Chapter 22

**Chapter 22**

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

Our entrance into Konoha passed by as one huge green blur, too many sights and sounds overloading my senses at one time. It was overwhelming, but welcomed all the same. For a while back there I doubted I would ever see my home again, but looking at the determined faces of my rescue team I realized there was no way they would have just left me behind. I laid my head on Dad's back and just let the realization sink into my body. I was home.

My body finally gave into the lingering exhaustion that I had been feeling since my rescue. It was the kind of exhaustion that not even Kyuubi could take care of and slowly I let my body give in to its desire to shut down once more. The next time I woke up I was settled beneath the stark white hospital sheets with clean bandages adorning my body and Dad sitting beside the bed.

He reached over and stroked my cheek. "Hey sweetie, Tsunade finalized your healing and she said you'll get to go home soon."

I cleared my throat, "How long was I out?"

Dad smiled softly. "Two days, but while you were out Tsunade pumped your stomach and took care of your dental work. They just healed the gums and reattached some nerve endings; you'll have to wait for your permanent teeth to come up."

I nodded slowly and looked around the empty room. "Where's everyone at?"

Dad smiled softly. "Sakumo went to report to the Third. He should have done it when we returned, but he stayed here with me and Kakashi. The Third was here the first day we brought you in, but seeing how you were knocked out he said to tell you 'welcome home' and that he'd stop by later on. Tsunade's around getting reacquainted with the hospital and 'Kashi's getting you a surprise."

I blinked. "A surprise?"

Dad nodded. "Yeah and I think you'll like it."

I nodded and squirmed a little bit underneath the clean sheets. They reeked of disinfectant and I felt disgusting. "Daddy, is there any way for me to get clean? I really need a shower."

Dad nodded. "I'll go see if I can go pull a couple of strings and get you a shower."

I nodded, feeling a whole lot better now that I was going to get clean. The door opened and Kakashi walked in with his hands hidden behind his back. Dad smiled at him before turning back to me. "Since Kakashi's here I'm going to go see about that shower."

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

Sensei ruffled my hair before walking out of the room and leaving me with Naru. I eye-smiled at her and walked over to her bed before bringing out my surprise. According to Tsunade, Naru hadn't eaten very well while in captivity and I figured she'd love to have some original Ichiraku Ramen. Naru's eyes dulled slightly as she took the box from me and set it on the small table beside the bed and turned back to me. Never in my entire life, this one and the one before, had I ever seen Uzumaki Naru turn down ramen, until now. If I wouldn't have been wearing my mask then I'm sure my jaw would have hit the floor from shock. "Naru? Are you okay?"

Naru nodded. "Yeah, why?"

I pointed to the box of ramen. "You didn't devour that in five seconds like you normally would."

She looked away before whispering, "I'm sorry Kakashi; it's just that…" She trailed off and continued to look down at the floor.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I couldn't meet Kakashi's eyes as he questioned me about not eating the ramen. Shigure taught me well not to trust food because I had no way of knowing exactly what was put into the food. It wasn't that I didn't trust Kakashi or even Teuchi; I just didn't trust the food itself. It may seem like a silly thing to mistrust, but the last time I took food from someone who was nice to me I ended up being overdosed.

I sighed before trying to explain to him why I wasn't eating, but I felt like if I spoke the words out loud they would sound even sillier than they sounded in my mind. I finally pushed my ridiculous fear away and looked into Kakashi's eyes. Charcoal grey eyes stared back at me with an understanding I hadn't expected to be there and at that moment I realized I wasn't the only person in the room that had experiences dealing with torture. In the other timeline Kakashi had been ANBU and surely knew the pain of a torturer's blade and the mental anguish of psychotic fears. I wasn't as alone as I originally thought.

"Kakashi, I just can't…"

"It's okay Naru, I understand completely but you've got to eat something." I nodded before looking at the ramen box with dread; it literally tore my insides in half that something as simple as food could make me this jittery. Would it always be like this? "It won't always be like this Naru." I blinked in shock at him, wondering just how he knew what I was thinking. He smiled at me from underneath his mask, "Wondering how I knew? Well, I can read you like a book Naru, and every little worry is written across your face. You're going to get better and I'll be with you every step of the way."

I nodded slowly. "Thanks Scarecrow."

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

A knock sounded throughout the room and Minato walked in with Tsunade and another nurse. Tsunade smiled at Naru. "Well, let's go get you cleaned up okay?"

Naru nodded and Kakashi silently slipped out the hospital door with a brilliant idea to get Naru to eat. If she wouldn't eat anything she hadn't watched being cooked, then he would bring the kitchen to her and cook whatever food she wanted. The only question was how exactly he was going to cook without a stove.

Kakashi shrugged before heading to the market, he would wing it and hope for the best.

* * *

The Third greeted Sakumo as the shinobi headed towards the Hokage Tower to give his report. "My ANBU just informed me Naru was awake, so since I'm heading to the hospital to see Naru, you can just give the report there in one of the meeting rooms."

Sakumo nodded, a small smile glued to his face as the uttered one simple phrase before walking with his Hokage back to the hospital. "Mission accomplished."

Sarutobi laughed before clapping Sakumo on the back. "There was no doubt in my mind about the success of this mission Sakumo, no doubt at all."

* * *

Tsunade led the way to the private bathroom in the hospital personnel lounge on the same floor as Naru's room. Minato walked beside his daughter and watched as she slowly walked in the flowing hospital gown. She looked so small in the oversized gown, so much like the child she was.

Tsunade stopped before the door labeled 'bathrooms' and opened the door before ushering Naru inside. "Naru, everything you need is already in there. The towels are on the counter and a new gown is underneath the towels. Take as long as you want okay?"

Naru nodded before looking back at Minato. "Don't leave."

Minato nodded. "I won't, I'll be right here for when you get out."

Naru nodded and entered the bathroom.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

Mentally I was applauding whoever designed the bathroom; it was spacious and didn't look like it belonged inside a hospital. Needless to say I was impressed. The bathroom was separated into two rooms; the second room being where I assumed the showers was at. I walked over to the counter in the first room and quickly undressed before wrapping the large towel around my body and walking into the other room.

I froze as I entered the room and stared at the large bathtub inside. A small whimper escaped my throat as my mind instantly flashed back to a similar tub filled with ice-cold water. I felt my hands reach up to rub my neck because I swore I could feel the grip of Tero's hands around them. A shiver worked its way up my back as the room became extremely cold and dark. I backed away from the tub and felt my back connect hard with the tiled wall and slowly I sunk down to rest against the floor. The chilly feeling wouldn't leave my body even as I wrapped the towel closer to myself and stared at the cause of my panic.

I had never felt more weak in my entire life as I sat there whimpering and carrying on over something as simple as a bathtub. I hated feeling like this.

"Kit."

I didn't answer the fox; I wasn't in the mood to talk to him at that moment. I was less than a few feet away from getting clean and I couldn't force my feet to carry me over there. I simply sat there and stared at the tub, replaying memories inside my mind.

"Kit, listen to me and listen good."

I nodded to show that I was listening, but there was no way I was going to actually pay attention to what he said.

"You've got to go get into the bath Naru."

I shook my head before answering him; there was no way I was going to be able to ignore him, especially when he was using my name. "Kyuubi, I can't, it's too soon."

The fox growled inside my head. "I'm telling you that you can. My host isn't the type of person to back down because she's scared or frightened. You've never backed down before powerful enemies and here a porcelain bathtub has your knees quaking."

I closed my eyes at his words, they were the truth, but every time I thought about getting into the tub I thought about Tero and his hands around my neck and the bite of the ice-cold water. Kyuubi sighed in frustration.

"Fine, sit here until someone finally comes in to check on you."

I sighed. "Kyuubi, are you fully awake now?"

"The seal that Iwa bastard used to cut off our chakra connection allowed me to build my chakra back up. I don't have as much as I used to, but I won't have to sleep like I was. You'll be hearing from me more often now."

I rolled my eyes. "Just great, the voice inside my head is going to come back."

"Naru?" I jumped slightly at the sound of Dad knocking on the second door. "Are you okay?"

I chewed on my bottom lip, but didn't answer. I hoped he would just walk away and let me finish, but no, he slowly opened the door and walked inside. His eyes softened as he saw me sitting along the wall wrapped in the large towel. He didn't speak as he walked over and sat beside me. We were quiet for a long time before he finally spoke. "Wanna' talk about it?"

I sighed. "Shigure and Tero used a bathtub filled with freezing water during one of my torture sessions." I saw out of the corner of my eye his hands tightened into fists. "I'm pretty sure my heart stopped 'cause Tero got a little carried away and nearly drowned me."

I trailed off and let the sentence sink into his mind; he was ticked from what I could tell. He stood up and held out a hand for me. "Come on, we've got to get you clean."

I blinked before taking his hand and letting him drag me close to the bathtub. I instantly began trying to break away from his hold. "Daddy no!"

He shushed me and turned around to hug me. "I'm not Tero nor am I Shigure; I'm going to take care of you."

He reached over and began running the bath water, constantly checking the temperature to see if it was to his liking before adding soap to the water. I stood beside the bathtub, still covered in my towel, and watched the large tub fill. Dad gently took my hand and stuck it into the water. "See? It's very warm and not even a little cold. So how about getting in so you can get clean?"

Dad let go of my hand, but I didn't bring it out of the water. I continued to twirl the water and soap bubbles around my hand before finally removing it from the water. He smiled at me before turning around. "Okay, get in."

I nodded to his back and dropped the towel before getting in and stooping down until the water level came to my chin. I gently closed my eyes to get used to the feeling; it was eerily similar to what I had gone through. I breathed heavily for a few seconds before willing myself to open my eyes and see that I wasn't with Tero or Shigure, to see that I was safe in Konoha with my dad. "Naru, I'm going to wash your hair now."

I nodded and sat up slightly as he picked up a cup from the basket with the soaps and settled behind me. The tub itself was situated in the middle of the room and Dad simply kneeled behind the tub to wash my hair. The first cup full of water got out the initial twigs and dirt that built up on the surface of my hair and I watched the little swirls of water carrying the debris down my face and into the tub of soapy water. Soon after that, he began massaging the soap into my scalp to remove the other traces of dirt from my hair.

It felt strange to have someone care enough to want to actually wash my hair for me. I knew this was something parents did for their children but I had never had this before. It was all new and strange to me. Dad, somewhere along the way, began humming a gentle tune as he washed the suds out of my hair and began putting more soap in the dirty locks. I hadn't had my hair washed in a while and all of the blood and mud had dried in my scalp, so I knew it was going to take more than one wash before it was deemed clean.

Dad's humming became a gentle buzz in the back of my mind as he finished washing out the last of the soap from my hair. It was comforting and warm. His hands stopped before more soap was added, this time it was a little bit thicker than before. "It's a conditioner. It'll help with the tangles."

I nodded and he went back to sliding the conditioner through my shortened locks of hair. His humming still calming to me and I finally worked up the nerve to ask him what the tune was. "Daddy, what are you humming?"

His hands stopped again before I heard him chuckle. "It's an old lullaby my mother used to sing to me. I don't exactly remember the words but I remember the tune. It was a silly little song about dancing foxes and singing moons, completely nonsense, but comforting all the same." The water cascaded down my face again and a washcloth was placed on the side of the tub. "I'll wash your back and you can wash everything else."

I nodded and began washing the dirt out from underneath my nails. Secretly I wanted to ask about his mother, my grandmother, but he beat me to it. "My mother, well I guess she's your grandmother too, anyway she was a storyteller by trade, which is why she had all of these little lullabies. She was a civilian in one of the small towns close to Konoha and would entertain the shinobi passing through the town with her stories."

I turned to look at him. "Is that how she met your dad?"

Dad smiled before nodding. "Yeah and he brought her back to Konoha to live, but she just wasn't cut out for the big village life. She liked the intimacy of the small town and always said Konoha was too impersonal for her tastes." He laughed before running the washcloth across my back. "She was something else though."

"What happened to her and your dad?"

Dad stopped running the washcloth across my back before answering. "They died about three years ago. Some of my enemies found out about them and got to them before I could."

I looked down at the water in sadness. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have asked."

Dad sighed behind me. "It's okay, and besides, they're your family too. I want you to know about them."

I nodded and dropped the washcloth into the dirty water. "I think I'm clean enough."

Dad chuckled before picking up the towel and holding it out for me to grab. "I'm going to wait for you outside okay?"

I nodded and waited for him to leave before getting out of the tub. As eerie as it felt to look at the tub, I felt like I had accomplished something.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

Mentally I checked all of the items off of my grocery list before heading back to the hospital. I even stopped by the house and picked up a few pots to cook with so all that was left was figuring out how I was going to cook the food. I sighed before heading up the hospital steps with my bags and finding Naru's room. It was empty so I figured I would just wait for her to get there. I began setting everything up, and spread all of the ingredients across the table beside Naru's bed so she could see everything that went into the ramen.

Yeah I was making her ramen because I knew she would enjoy that more than anything else. The door opened and Naru walked in with Sensei. She looked a whole lot better. The bruises had all faded away and her hair looked like it had been washed, but her eyes still bore that tiredness in them.

Sensei smiled at me before gesturing to the box of ramen and the ramen ingredients. "Kakashi, I think you have enough ramen here."

I glared at him and he only laughed louder. A knock sounded on the door and Sensei opened it before nodding to the person saying he'd be there shortly. Sensei turned around and gave Naru an apologetic smile. "I've got to run to a meeting real quick, okay? I'll be back shortly."

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Naru sat on the bed and watched as Kakashi began putting water from the sink into the pot and added the seasoning. He stared at the pot a few minutes before setting the pot on the other bed and looking back at Naru. "I'm going to fix some ramen for you."

Naru raised an eyebrow before questioning him. "And exactly how are you going to do that without a stove or any heat source?"

Kakashi eye-smiled at her. "I have a theory of sorts. Hang on and I'll try it out."

Kakashi grabbed the pot with both hands and looked at Naru. "I think if I add just the right amount of chakra into the metal around the pot that it will boil."

Naru blinked before nodding and watching as Kakashi began slowly pumping chakra into the metal pot. The only problem was that the chakra began pushing against the water and since the water couldn't move past the boundaries of the walls of the pot it had only one place to go and that was up. The water reacted violently and pushed up to splash Kakashi in the face. Bits of naruto and eggplant flew up from the water and showered both Kakashi and Naru.

Kakashi looked down in shock at the wet floor littered with bits of naruto and eggplant here and there. His eyes left the floor and looked at Naru, who was trying her hardest to keep a straight face before losing the battle and erupting in a fit of giggles.

Kakashi blushed underneath his mask at his failure before glaring playfully at Naru. He didn't care that she was giggling at him, all he could think about was the fact she was actually giggling. He hadn't seen her smile or giggle in days. "Okay, it wasn't that funny."

She nodded her head. "Yes it was Scarecrow."

Kakashi glared once more before grabbing a blanket off of the other bed and cleaning up the mess from the floor. "Okay, I've got another theory."

Naru had finally gotten herself under control and was watching Kakashi carefully to see what he was going to do. Kakashi's only other option was to use a Katon jutsu to boil the water. He refilled the pot with more water and seasoning before setting the pot on the floor and gathering his chakra to produce the jutsu. Naru watched with wide eyes as Kakashi brought his fingers up to perform the hand signs.

"Katon no Ju…"

"HATAKE KAKASHI! If you finish that jutsu you are grounded until you're forty-two!"

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

My hands faltered as I heard Dad's threat before slowing turning around to see him and the Third Hokage standing in the doorway. I eye-smiled at him before giving a tiny wave. "Hiya?"

Dad massaged his head underneath his forehead protector. "What did I do to deserve this?"

The Third patted Dad's shoulder before entering the room and looking at everything. "Kakashi-kun, what are you doing?"

I sighed. "Well Hokage-sama I was going to cook ramen and seeing how this is a hospital room I didn't have a stove and was going to improvise."

Dad glared. "What happened the last time you improvised like this?"

I blushed slightly before remembering exactly what happened last time I improvised to cook something.

 _Flashback…._

 _Kakashi glared at the missing flame. The pilot light was out again. His dad was still asleep and Kakashi wanted to cook breakfast as kind of a way to show his appreciation for everything his Dad had done, like not killing himself. Kakashi shivered as he thought about how close his Dad came to committing suicide._

 _The young boy knew his father kept the matches in the highest cabinet and with a few chakra manipulation techniques he was walking up the side of the cabinet and reaching into the open cabinet door. Kakashi grinned in victory before pulling out the box of matches only to find a single match in the box. Mentally Kakashi cursed his luck before walking back down the cabinet and standing in front of the stove. With determination burning bright in his eyes, Kakashi struck the match against the box and watched it ignite._

 _He slowly lowered the match to the pilot light and grinned as the match stayed lit, then without warning, Kakashi felt the tickling in his nose. His eyes watered as he tried to hold the sneeze in, but all too soon he had to let it go and out went his match. Kakashi pouted as he straightened up and groaned, if he would have been wearing his mask that wouldn't have happened._

 _Kakashi grinned once more as his genius mind came up with another solution. A fire jutsu could light the pilot light if it was controlled enough. Kakashi smiled as he began forcing his chakra into concentrated streams to be able to control the strength and intensity of the flame. His entire mind was blank as he focused everything on building up his chakra and sculpting it into the correct amount he believed he needed. Kakashi made the hand signs and felt the chakra build up in his throat._

 _"Katon no Jut…"_

 _"Ka-chan? What are you doing?"_

 _Kakashi's concentration broke and he released a small puff of flame, which caught a dishtowel on fire. "Whoa!"_

 _Sakumo yelped before knocking the burning cloth to the ground and stomping on it._

 _End Flashback…_

I believe that was the closest I had ever came to getting corporal punishment and I wouldn't have blamed him if he had spanked me. That was a pretty stupid idea. I then realized I just tried the same thing over. I shook my head at my stupidity before looking up at Dad; he was still shaking his head in disbelief.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

The Third turned away from father and son to look at Naru. She looked relieved to be home, but there was still a shadow that seemed to settle over her. He smiled at her gently. "Naru, I just wanted to come down and see how you were."

Naru nodded before answering, "I'm alive Hokage-sama."

The Third nodded. "That you are, my dear, that you are."

Sakumo ruffled Kakashi's hair before picking the pot off of the floor and making his hands glow white. Kakashi watched as the water began to boil in the pot. "How did you do that!? I tried and all I got was a face full of water."

Sakumo laughed. "I've been around a few years longer than you have, so obviously I'm going to pick up some nifty little tricks along the way. Water's tricky, you've got to put a little bit more chakra in there than you need or it will try to escape."

Sakumo placed the boiling water in the bedside table for Kakashi to add the noodles. Soon the room was filled with the delicious smell of ramen and Naru smiled as Kakashi handed her the bowl along with a pair of chopsticks.

Sakumo walked out of Naru's room and down the hall to see Tsunade. He wanted to see when Naru would be allowed to go home.

"Ahh, Hatake-san."

Sakumo stopped and turned to see Danzo walk out of one of the hospital rooms. His arms were crossed across his chest and his mouth was set in a smirk. "Danzo, what a pleasant surprise. I haven't seen you since you tried to destroy my life's work."

Danzo's eyes flashed before he held out a hand to Sakumo. "Now, let's be reasonable. I only said those things for your own good. Everything turned out okay in the end right?"

Sakumo snarled at the man before knocking his hand away. "What do you want Danzo?"

Danzo reached into his pocket and brought out a scroll before handing it off to Sakumo. "Simple, I have a proposition for you."

Sakumo took the scroll and began reading it as Danzo continued talking. "I was terribly upset to hear that Naru was captured and that we had to send a rescue team after her. I don't think you're teaching her correctly."

Sakumo's head snapped up and anger flashed across his face. "What the hell are you talking about?"

Danzo chuckled. "I'm saying that obviously she's not learning everything she needs to know or she wouldn't have been caught. You're failing as a teacher and not teaching her correctly."

Sakumo controlled his emotions before answering Danzo. "Danzo get out of my face. I have business to attend to."

Danzo called after Sakumo as he continued down the hallway. "I would make her great Sakumo and she would never be in that situation ever again. I will make her everything you want her to be, but can't train her to be. I will make her a worthy shinobi."

Sakumo didn't answer Danzo, but the man's words rang through his mind as he tried to find Tsunade. Was it his fault Naru had been captured? Was there anything he should have taught her that could have prevented this?

Sakumo found Tsunade talking to Minato about Naru. "Sakumo, Tsunade said we could take her home today."

Sakumo turned to Tsunade. "Seriously?"

Tsunade nodded. "She's completely healed physically. All you've got to worry about is her mental state. The Third is most likely setting her up with a therapist and she'll be barred from missions until she gets an 'okay' from her therapist, but other than that she's going to be fine."

Minato smiled at Tsunade. "Is there anything else we should know?"

Tsunade nodded her head. "Yes, there were two very serious complications that I need to address. We've had her on medication to prevent nightmares; the only problem is that it works by preventing the brain from entering REM sleep, which is the rapid eye movement sleep level. It's preventing her from becoming well rested, so we can't let her continue to take the medication. We're sending her home without any medication, so she's most likely going to experience nightmares. These can be extremely violent and hard on her. Just comfort her the best way you can and keep her talking about it. We took her off this morning, so the remainder of the drug should be out of her system by tonight."

Sakumo paled slightly and Minato's smile dropped into a grimace.

Tsunade sighed. "I'm going to have a colleague of mine tell you about the other complication. Tohru, they're ready for you."

Sakumo smiled as the distinct sound of heels clicking against the floor sounded down the hall. Minato playfully shoved Sakumo's shoulder before calling out, "Hey Tohru!"

Tohru brushed her brown hair out of her eyes before greeting the shinobi. "It's good to see you two again; I just wish it were on better terms. Naru was drugged during her T&I session with a high dosage of an unknown psychochemical drug. My labs haven't been able to pinpoint exactly what it was yet, but they've narrowed it down to having similar properties to lysergic acid diethylamide or better known as LSD. It's not the exact same drug though, and it's definitely more sinister. My labs have taken samples from Naru's digestive track while she was asleep and should be able to determine what was altered about the drug. I hate to say this, but Konoha could possibly use whatever it was they used on her."

Minato sighed. "Are there any long term effects?"

Tohru shook her head. "She didn't take it long enough for there to be any effects, the most she'll get is headaches. LSD mostly alters the mind and since we've gotten as much out of her system as we could, she should be fine."

Sakumo smiled. "Thanks Tohru."

Tohru smiled back. "Any time. If she does start experiencing strange behaviors or symptoms just send a message and I'll be there as soon as I can."

* * *

The Third bid goodbye to the young shinobi before walking out of the hospital room and contemplating his conversation with Yamanaka Inoichi from the first day Naru was back. The meeting went well, but the young shinobi was still having doubts about taking on a single patient. He didn't understand why Naru was such an important patient that he only needed to take her on.

Hiruzen sighed before rubbing his eyes. The war was taking a lot out of him, not to mention his sons missed him being home. The younger of the two boys, Asuma, made sure to let him know exactly how much he wanted his dad home too. As Sarutobi walked back to the Hokage Tower for his final few hours of work, he met Yamanaka Inoichi.

The tall blonde haired teenager bowed in greeting. "Hello Hokage-sama."

The Hokage nodded to Inoichi. "Have you made your decision Inoichi?"

Inoichi nodded. "Before I decide, is there any way for me to observe the girl?"

The Hokage nodded. "Follow me Inoichi." Inoichi followed the Third back to the Hokage Tower.

"Inoichi you are by far one of the best therapists in the village."

Inoichi blushed slightly as he entered the Hokage's office. "Thank you sir."

The Third nodded. "Which is why I decided you would be the best candidate for this mission."

Inoichi nodded. "I'm fine with that, but like I said two days ago, what about my other patients?"

The Third sighed. "They'll be taken by another therapist for the first few months. Don't worry they'll be fine."

Inoichi sighed before nodding in defeat. He was honestly curious about the girl the Hokage told him about. The Hokage hadn't gone into any details over her situation yet and since he agreed to work with her, he figured it was time to educate himself about this girl. "What happened to her?"

"She was captured by Iwa shinobi and forced to undergo T&I at Fort Kei. She's not herself and I'm afraid she's been affected more by this than I originally thought. This normally bright and laughing girl is now dark and depressed. Uzu Naru is far from the life of the party she used to be."

Inoichi nodded before the name clicked in his head. "Wait, Uzu Naru? Is that the same Naru that pranked the ANBU and Jounin?"

The Third laughed. "Yes, the very same. I believe you were a part of the lucky few that missed out on that meeting."

"Has her personality changed completely?"

The Third sighed. "There is still a lot of the old Naru in there, but she has a few fears now that are left over from some of the things they did to her at Fort Kei. She refuses to eat anything that she hasn't watched being cooked and she can't stand for her arms to be pinned above her head. All of these things must tie in with whatever they did to her."

Inoichi nodded while he mentally took notes on everything he was learning. "I'll have to hold a session with her in order to find out everything that happened, plus you'll need the report of her experiences anyway."

The Third nodded before bringing his hands together and performing a privacy jutsu. "Inoichi, what I'm about to tell you is very important and you must not reveal this information until I or Naru sees fit."

Inoichi nodded. "Yes sir!"

"Uzu Naru is the daughter of Namikaze Minato."

Inoichi blinked in surprise. "Seriously?"

The Third nodded before heading over to his crystal ball. "Come look."

Inoichi watched as the haze in the ball became clearer and a small blonde haired girl was sitting in a hospital bed staring at the wall in front of her. She looked either to be deep in thought or completely out of it. The silver haired boy sitting on the edge of her bed was trying his hardest to get her attention, but to no avail. Inoichi recognized the two as Uzu Naru and Hatake Kakashi.

Kakashi's eyes flashed before he challenged Naru to a staring contest. The girl looked like she was going to tell him no before a spark of ambition ignited in her eyes. The same prankster Naru was still there, they would just have to look for her. Both children stared unblinking at each other. Kakashi's eyes were fixed somewhere slightly above Naru's head and Naru's eyes were trained on Kakashi's forehead protector.

Naru's eye twitched with the desire to blink before she shook it off and continued staring. Kakashi's eyes watered slightly before he too shook it off and continued staring. Inoichi looked at the Hokage in disbelief. "Are they always like that?"

Sarutobi laughed. "Unfortunately yes, they like to compete against each other and make the other squirm, but they're closer than siblings."

Inoichi turned his attention back to the crystal ball and watched as Naru's hand snaked closer to the blanket Kakashi was sitting on top of. He furrowed his brows together as he tried to figure out what the girl was going to do. Kakashi was sitting balanced on the side of the bed, his feet were dangling off the side and his body was right on top of the blanket. Inoichi's eyes widened as he watched Naru harshly tug on the blanket and Kakashi fell off of the hospital bed.

The sudden movement startled Kakashi into blinking as he hit the floor. Naru grinned from her spot in the bed before declaring she was the winner.

Inoichi erupted in laughter and wiped away the tears that had escaped his eyes before talking. "I'll take her Hokage-sama! She's going to be the most interesting patient I've had in years."

Sarutobi smiled before leading Inoichi away from the crystal ball and telling him the conditions of working with Naru. "Inoichi, you cannot use any of your families mind walking techniques on her. Do you understand?"

Inoichi nodded once and the Hokage sighed in relief. "Good, I knew I could trust you."

* * *

Minato and Sakumo returned only to find a glaring Kakashi and a satisfied Naru sitting on her bed.

Sakumo grinned. "Tsunade-sama said you're free to go home right now if you want to."

Naru sighed in relief before getting out of bed to get ready.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I smiled as Naru headed up the stairs and into the house; she was on strict bed rest for the next week. It was a part of the deal Minato-sensei had made with Tsunade. If they could keep Naru from stressing herself out then she was able to go home. I rolled my eyes. Yeah, like Naru was going to actually stay in the bed like she was supposed to. Normally a shinobi would be in the hospital for months if they sustained injuries like Naru had, but thanks to Tsunade's and Kyuubi's healing, she was ready to be discharged.

I smiled though, they wouldn't have kept her in the hospital anyway because she was worse than I was about hospitals and tried to avoid them like the plaque. I walked into the living room and watched as Naru yawned. The only thing they hadn't been able to take away was her exhaustion. Naru told everyone she was heading to bed. Minato-sensei followed her upstairs and Dad fiddled with a scroll in his hand.

"Dad? What's that?"

I pointed to the scroll, which he quickly pushed into his pocket before smiling at me. "Nothing Kakashi, don't worry about it. Did you eat today?"

I shook my head and he ushered me into the kitchen and fixed a quick meal.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

Dad pulled back the covers and tucked me in before ruffling my hair and brushing a kiss across my forehead. "Night sweetie."

I sighed as he walked out of the door before closing my eyes and letting my mind wander. This was the first time I had been truly alone since I was rescued and I couldn't stop myself from thinking back on everything I had been through.

I drifted off into a fitful sleep full of images of things that happened. A whimper escaped my throat as the dream progressed.

 **Dreamscape…..**

 **Naru blinked as she watched the dark ripples flowing across the stone floor. Her mind screamed at her that this was impossible without a downward slope, but her body continued to follow the flowing ripples. The ripples of water lapped against her bare feet and forced a shiver down her spine as she continued walking across the empty room.**

 **Suddenly the water tightened around her feet and pulled them out from underneath her. Her head banged against the stone floor as the tentacles of water traveled up her body before wrapping tightly around her neck.**

 **The cold seeped into her bones as a horrible laugh filled the air. Naru screamed with everything she had.**

 **End Dreamscape….**

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo excused himself from the table and headed into his study with the scroll in hand. His mind had been buzzing since he saw Danzo. He couldn't help but wonder if there was something he didn't teach Naru that got her caught or prevented her from getting away. Sakumo sighed before running his hand through his bangs and opening the scroll up; if he signed his name on the scroll then Uzu Naru would be given over to Danzo to train.

A small voice in the back of Sakumo's head told him she would be better off with Danzo, but that thought didn't sit well with Sakumo. He sighed once more before pacing the room. Then his eye caught the gleam of light reflecting off of something on the floor. Upon closer inspection, Sakumo found a picture lying carelessly on the floor. He picked the picture up and smiled as he saw what it was a picture of.

It was the picture they had taken at Naru's birthday supper at Ichiraku Ramen. Both Kakashi and Naru were sitting on their stools. Naru was smiling happily over a bowl of steaming ramen while Kakashi was mask-less and smirking at his friend's antics. Minato was standing behind Naru giving her bunny ears and Sakumo was behind Kakashi trying to keep his son from pulling that mask back up.

They were happy though and Sakumo couldn't bear to break that up. He turned to the scroll as the words of Tero came back to him. "Y-you tr-trained h-her w-well." Sakumo closed his eyes and ripped the scroll in half. Uzu Naru was his student and no one was going to take his student away from him. Sakumo was throwing the scroll in the trashcan when a scream tore through the house.

"Naru!"

* * *

Minato was the first up the stairs and into the room. He reached for Naru, but Sakumo stopped him. The man turned on his friend and hissed, "What are you doing?"

Sakumo sighed before whispering, "You can't just wake her up by coming in here and yelling. You've got to slowly wake her up or she'll attack you once she's aware."

Minato slumped slightly. "I know that, but Sakumo, this is my daughter we're talking about."

Sakumo nodded before turning to look at Kakashi, who was standing by the doorway. "I know it's hard, but calm down and then go over there."

Minato took a deep breath before going over to his whimpering daughter and gently shaking her awake. She instantly fought back and snarled at him. He dropped his hands and tried to gently talk to her, so she would recognize him. Naru's eyes widened as she realized she wasn't dreaming anymore and instantly began shivering. The dream had been too real for her to handle. Her mind warped her nightmares into something close to reality and that scared her more than anything else ever would. Tero hadn't been shy about using genjutsu on her and her mind used that against her.

Minato pulled Naru into his lap as she shivered. "Naru, what's wrong?"

She shook her head before burying her face into his chest. Sakumo whispered for Kakashi to make some tea for Naru. Minato rubbed her back to calm her down before gently beginning to hum the same lullaby from earlier. Kakashi entered the room with a cup of hot Chamomile tea and set it on the table beside Naru's bed.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I shivered once more before molding into dad's arms. His gentle humming worked wonders on my erratic mind. Sensei and Kakashi slowly drifted out of the bedroom as dad got comfortable on the small bed, never breaking his hold on me.

"Naru, will you tell me what you dreamed?"

I shook my head. The dream hadn't been horrible. There weren't any monsters chasing after me or scary things lurking in the dark. It was simply that same feeling of loneliness and coldness. It was the feeling I had long associated with death and fear. I shivered closer to him before rubbing my hands on the skin of my neck to take away the cold feeling left there by my dream.

Dad sighed before stroking my hair. "You've got to talk about it Naru."

"I don't feel like it right now."

He sighed before nodding and bringing the blanket to wrap around me and handing me the cup of tea. "Fine, drink this and go back to sleep."

I did drift back to sleep after finishing the cup of tea, but it wasn't restful and I continuously woke up. Having dad there though was a huge help.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo sighed before heading downstairs to lock the front door and to make sure Kakashi turned off the stove. His son wasn't forgetful, but it didn't hurt to check just in case. The stove was off and the lights were out as Sakumo headed back up the stairs before slipping into Kakashi's room to watch his son sleep for a few minutes. The boy had proved himself a lot over the last week as both a shinobi and as a friend. Sakumo couldn't have been any prouder of him than he was at that moment.

Sakumo silently backed out of the room and entered his bedroom to find an ANBU operative standing beside his window. "ANBU-san?"

The cat masked shinobi bowed to Sakumo before speaking. "The Hokage wants to inform you that Uzu Naru will meet with Yamanaka Inoichi tomorrow afternoon at the Hokage Tower."

Sakumo nodded. "Okay, thank you."

The ANBU turned before speaking again. "Oh and the Hokage requests your presence at the same time tomorrow."

Sakumo nodded again. "I'll be there."

Sakumo watched the ANBU disappear in a puff of smoke before heading into his bathroom to get ready for the night.

* * *

Ryozo glared at the clock on the wall as he took another swig from his bottle of sake. His girlfriend still wasn't home yet. He growled before slamming the bottle down on the table and kicking over a chair.

"Seriously, let's not break those chairs. They were a gift from my brother."

Ryozo's eyes quickly flicked toward the door where Tohru stood in her hospital uniform, the emblem of Konoha's poison detection department proudly stitched across her shoulder. The green leaf spiral with the silver skull and crossbones in shadow behind it added to the feel of danger around her. "Where the hell have you been?"

Tohru rolled her eyes before kicking her heels off and walking into the house. "I had to work another double shift."

Ryozo snarled at her. "I thought we had an agreement about tonight. You were supposed to be home early so we could go to dinner. You know how much I hate to cancel my plans."

Tohru walked away from him and snarled back, venom lacing into her voice. "Yeah, I know all about your _plans_."

Ryozo grabbed her arm and pulled her to him before gently kissing her lips. "I must have sounded angry just then. I'm sorry, but you drive me so crazy sometimes. You know how jealous I can get."

Tohru let him kiss her before breaking away. "You've got to get over this jealousy thing Ryozo. I can't even take care of patients without being accused of cheating."

The man turned away before letting her arm go. "How was work?"

Tohru smiled softly, she loved this side of Ryozo, the kind side. It was the other side she couldn't stand. "It was good, a little busy. I had a new patient. Hatake Sakumo's student."

Tohru froze as she realized exactly what name she said and mentally cursed as the sake bottle in Ryozo's hand cracked. "You are to stay away from him, do you hear me!?"

"He's a good man Ryozo; you have no right to judge him!"

Ryozo was across the room and in her face before she could defend herself. He pinned her close to the wall and snarled in her ear. "He's scum and I swear if I hear or see you around him I'll…"

Ryozo's words melted into a groan as Tohru kneed him in the groin and broke away from his hold. "You won't do a damn thing to me Suzuki Ryozo! I dare you to try because I promise once I'm through beating your sorry backside from here to the hospital you'll be very lucky to even remember what your last name is."

Tohru was breathing heavily as she pointed to the door. "Now get out! I don't care where you go or how you get there, but you better leave my kitchen."

Ryozo snatched up his bag before limping out of the house, cursing her name all the way. Tohru sighed before locking the door and climbing the stairs to her bathroom and hopping in the shower. It had been a very long day.

* * *

"Where is it? Where is it? It's not here! Where is it?"

Sakumo blinked as he heard the distinct sound of Naru tearing through the house looking for something. He yawned before dragging his body out of bed and walking downstairs to see Naru tearing apart the living room.

"Naru?"

She stopped and looked briefly at Sakumo. Tears collected in her eyes as she continued searching. "Sensei I can't find it!"

Sakumo tilted his head in confusion. "What can't you find Naru?"

"My forehead protector!"

Sakumo blinked before chuckling. "That's okay, we'll just get you another one."

Naru shook her head. "No! Iwa took that one from me and I just left it behind. I need that one to prove I am still strong. It's my promise that I'll never be weak again and now it's gone!"

Sakumo shook his head. "Naru, it's going to be okay. We'll get you another one."

Naru shook her head as the tears finally fell from her eyes, a combination of exhaustion and emotional trauma finally slipping out. "That's not the point! I know I can get another one! I know that, I just hoped that…"

Sakumo smiled sadly before kneeling and pulling his student into a hug while shushing her. "Shush, shush, calm down Naru. You don't need that forehead protector to prove you're strong. You already know you're strong."

A small tap landed on Sakumo's shoulder as he saw his sleepy eyed son holding a leaf forehead protector in his hands. "I got it after I got Naru's katana. I thought she'd like to have it back."

Naru blinked before taking the forehead protector out of Kakashi's hands and hugging him tightly. "Thanks Kakashi."

Kakashi nodded before smiling. "Any time Naru, any time."

Sakumo sighed before running a hand through his hair. It was about five o'clock in the morning. "Where's Minato?"

Naru sighed. "Still sleeping. I kind of snuck out of bed."

Sakumo nodded before heading back upstairs. He probably should have gone out to train, but his body vetoed that decision as he entered his bedroom.

Kakashi looked at Naru. "How long have you been awake?"

Naru looked away before answering. "Just a few minutes."

Kakashi rolled his eyes. "Liar."

Naru sighed before running her fingers over the forehead protector in her hands. "Okay fine, maybe a few hours."

Kakashi nodded before pointing back upstairs. "Go on back to sleep, you look like you need it."

Naru huffed slightly before heading up the stairs. "Hey Kakashi? Where's Aki?"

"Gai's got her."

"Oh, okay." Naru nodded before continuing up the stairs and into her room. Kakashi yawned once more before heading up after her and walking into his bedroom.

Kakashi lay down on his quilt before watching the stars twinkle outside. It was going to be a long road for Naru, but she would get through it.

She wasn't Konoha's Number One Unpredictable Shinobi for nothing.

* * *

Across the village Kushina packed her bags. She hadn't seen Minato since the rescue team returned. Though it would have been better to just leave without saying goodbye, she couldn't make herself do that. She sighed before stuffing another pair of pants into her bag. She really did love Minato; even with all of her teasing she did love him.

He was one of the best things that ever happened to her and she wasn't going to let him go that easy. The red head sighed as she moved around their shared house before plopping down on the couch. She decided at that moment she would go see Minato and Naru before she left for Whirlpool. She did owe her lover and his daughter that much.

Kushina yawned before falling asleep, curled up on their old, worn out couch.

* * *

Jiraiya groaned before thumbing through his old notebooks from his traveling years all of those years ago. Back when he was dirt poor and simply traveling to find an adventure. Way back before the title of Sannin came to him and his teammates. He sighed once more as he pulled out a picture of a young, white haired girl and a black haired woman. Those two brought back painful memories and were the reason he wanted to know the truth about Uzu Naru. He had to make sure the same thing didn't happen to Minato that happened to him.

Jiraiya dropped the picture back into the notebook and slammed it shut. The memories of that betrayal far too painful for him to relive sober. He ordered up another round.

"You've got a mission tomorrow and here you are drinking your troubles away."

Jiraiya rolled his eyes at his teammate before offering up a shot glass. "Shove it Orochimaru. If I want to be drunk, then I'm going to get drunk. So join me will ya?"

Orochimaru smirked at his teammate. "Alcohol is not the answer Jiraiya. Especially not when it means I'll have to deal with Tsunade harping on you because you've got a hangover and you harping on Tsunade because she won't heal your hangover."

Jiraiya laughed before handing his friend a shot glass and watching the other shinobi stare at it with distaste before setting it down on the bar. "Don't be late tomorrow Jiraiya. I have other business to attend to besides waiting all day for you to show up."

Jiraiya watched as his teammate walked out of the bar before shaking his head and wondering when the snake became so distant. Surely the war wasn't causing this. The small troubling feeling Jiraiya got whenever something was about to screw up big time thudded loudly in his head as he downed the next shot glass.


	26. Chapter 23

**Chapter 23**

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I sighed before gently closing the bedroom door and sitting against the wall to watch the moonlight shimmer into the room through the window. Kakashi wasn't as much of a genius as everyone thought if he believed I was just going to go to bed. Honestly, I thought he knew me better than that. The wind blew the dead leaves across the window as the stars twinkled beside the moon. I was tired and wanted to sleep so very badly, but every time I closed my eyes I would see those scenes. Dad stirred and his hand moved across the bed, patting the empty space beside him. He immediately sat up and looked around the room for me in a slight panic. His eyes landed on me as I sat against the wall. Worry clouded his blue eyes as he got out of bed.

"Naru? You okay?"

I nodded my head before putting my acting skills to good use and forcing myself to yawn and rub sleepily at my eyes. I didn't want him to worry about me; I saw the look in his eyes every time he watched me. He felt guilty about what happened to me and I didn't want him to blame himself for my mistakes. So I worked up another yawn and lied through my teeth.

"Yeah daddy, I just needed to go to the bathroom."

Dad raised an eyebrow at me before smirking. "So you went to the bathroom and then came back and sat on the hard floor?"

I nodded before patting the floor beside me. "It feels pretty comfortable compared to the stone I slept on last week." I winced as I saw him flinch slightly. The fact I actually slept on stone didn't bother me, it was everything else that still made my skin crawl. Dad instantly walked over to me and held out his hand for me to take.

"Come on Naru. Get back in bed and get some sleep."

I sighed before grabbing his hand and letting him drag me to the bed. He waited for me to get comfortable before lying down beside me and placing his arms behind his head. I watched quietly as he stared up at the ceiling. Finally he turned to me and leaned on his elbow. "I don't appreciate being lied to Naru."

I blinked in shock before looking away ashamed. "I don't know what you're talking about. I was telling the truth."

"No you weren't and you're still not telling the truth."

I refused to look into his eyes because I refused to see the disappointment there. I felt his hand underneath my chin as he lifted my head to force me to look at him. Instead of the disappointment I expected, I found love and acceptance.

"I know you're having a hard time right now, I get that, but you've got to be honest with me about certain things. How do you ever expect to get better if you don't let me help you? Now tell me the truth, are you okay?"

I looked into his eyes one more time before nodding my head. He sighed before lying back down and closing his eyes. Did I feel bad about lying to him? Of course I did. I would have had to have been heartless to not feel horrible about it. I was just an independent person and right now I needed to figure out these nightmares by myself or I would never get over them. It may hurt him now, but in the end everything would be okay.

"Fine. Just go to sleep Naru."

I turned away from him and glared at the wall, blaming it for everything that happened. Gently, Dad ran his fingers through my hair in an attempt to soothe me to sleep. The gentle tugs and soft massages into my scalp lulled me into a state right between alertness and sleep. It was a pleasant state, but it wasn't as refreshing as actual sleep. Well, at least I wasn't reliving nightmares.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

The next morning was very uneventful. Well, unless you count Gai banging on the door at dawn with Aki happily yipping in his arms as an event worth mentioning. Dad heard the banging from his room and promptly produced a clone to wake me up and inform me that my newest responsibility of the house was answering the door. Well, it was a step up from separating the laundry, which meant I was finally moving up in the world.

I managed to drag myself out of bed and down the stairs as Gai started his third round of banging in perfect timing to Aki's barks. I took a deep breath before opening the door and looking at the normally shy boy, he had a smile plastered onto his face before picking up Aki and putting her into my arms.

"Good morning rival!"

I felt my eye twitch, not this morning, it was too early. "Good morning Gai. Thanks for watching Aki for me."

Gai nodded enthusiastically before his happy face grew somber. "How's Naru?"

I sighed. Before we left for the rescue mission I dropped off Aki at Gai's house. Even though Gai wasn't a shinobi yet he was still smart enough to figure out exactly what happened. He knew Naru was on a mission and he also knew I was leaving on a rescue mission. He didn't know the details, but he deduced that Naru was in trouble and we needed to save her. "She's resting right now. It is kind of early Gai."

Gai laughed. "Well, Sensei likes for us to be at the training grounds early so we can get in some training before we take a mission for the day."

I blinked in surprise, a mission? "Gai, academy students don't take missions."

"Of course they don't Kakashi, but I'm not an academy student anymore. I took the early testing while you were on your last mission. You are now looking at a proud genin of Konoha!"

I finally took in Gai's appearance. While he wasn't wearing the green spandex jumpsuit, he was wearing a weapon pouch on his right thigh, a forehead protector around his waist and surprisingly neutral colors. It was at that moment I realized just how young Gai and I were. At the rate we were going, we were going to be old before adulthood. Funny how some things about the past, well future, just aren't going to change.

Gai looked at the time before quickly bidding me goodbye. "I've got to run Kakashi, but I really want to come by and say something to Naru. When can I see her?"

"I'm not sure Gai, but maybe next week sometime. She just needs to get used to being home again." Gai nodded before starting to run off, but I stopped him. "Oh and Gai?" He turned and looked at me. "Congratulations on graduating. Pretty soon our competitions will get really interesting." Gai laughed before waving and disappearing from the yard. Aki barked happily in my arms before attempting to jump down. I sat her on the ground and watched in amusement as she ran up the stairs.

The sun was out and burning bright by now. The weather was slightly warmer than normal for it to be early February. I was still amazed by exactly how much had happened in a few short months. I smiled before heading into the kitchen to begin breakfast. Since I was up I might as well be useful.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Somewhere in the back of Sakumo's mind he knew he should be ashamed of the fact that he woke his seven-year-old son up at dawn for the boy to answer the door for Gai. He knew it, but his body just didn't care. Sakumo slept in blissful warmth for a few more minutes, letting his body become heavier with sleep and slowly drifting into a peaceful slumber. That is, until a very cold nose brushed against the nape of his neck. Sakumo's entire body jolted from sleep as he quickly sat up to glare at the adorable little puppy playfully wagging her tail at him.

"Something tells me this is payback." Aki didn't answer; instead she wagged her tail before hopping into his lap and trying to get him to pet her. Sakumo chuckled before scratching her behind the ear and picking her up off of the bed. "Let's go see what Kakashi's doing." The puppy wiggled in Sakumo's arms before calming down as the man petted her behind the ear once more.

When Sakumo walked into the kitchen, Kakashi was standing on top of the stool by the stove, cracking eggs into the frying pan. He set Aki down and watched as the pup instantly attacked a toy in the corner of the room. Sakumo walked to the stove and ruffled Kakashi's hair before throwing away the eggshells.

Minato and Naru finally made their way downstairs. Both looked like they could have handled a few more hours of sleep. Naru sat down at the table and watched as Kakashi scrambled the eggs before scooping them onto a large plate. Everything else was already on the table and ready to be eaten. Minato smiled brightly before taking the large plate from Kakashi and setting it on the table.

"Everything looks really good Kakashi."

Kakashi nodded before hopping off of the stool and going to sit at the table. Sakumo placed a carton of milk and a pitcher of orange juice on the table before finally sitting down. He vaguely noticed that Naru only got eggs, the only thing she had seen Kakashi cook.

Sakumo sighed, "Naru, you've got a meeting today at the Hokage Tower."

Naru blinked. "With whom?"

"Yamanaka Inoichi. He's going to handle your mental recovery."

Naru nodded before sipping some milk and finishing off her eggs. "Breakfast was good Kakashi." Kakashi nodded as Naru left the room and went upstairs. Minato sighed heavily before hiding his face in his hands in complete desperation.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I massaged my temples to staple down the headache I could feel growing beneath my skin. My brain felt like it was on fire. Whether that was from lack of sleep or some side-effect from whatever drug Shigure gave me, I had no way of knowing. I opened my bedroom door and found a red haired woman sitting calmly on the windowsill. I blinked before rubbing my eyes to make sure they weren't playing tricks on me. It was Uzumaki Kushina, my mother who I had not officially met yet.

She smiled at me before waving. "You know leaving your window unlocked like that is dangerous."

I sighed. "Well, normal people would come in through the front door."

"We're shinobi Naru and live in a shinobi village, we're far from normal. Especially the Jounin, we're crazy."

I couldn't help but give her a small grin as she chuckled happily at her joke. She stopped chuckling as she slipped to the floor and sat on my bed. She looked me over once before speaking. "Well, I guess we haven't been formally introduced yet. I'm Uzumaki Kushina."

I bowed to her. "Uzu Naru. It's nice to finally meet you."

Kushina rolled her eyes. "I'm glad I got to meet you too, Naru. Your idiot father took long enough to tell me about you."

My heart stopped with those words. He hadn't told his lover about me? I swallowed heavily before looking at Kushina, who was still insulting my father's bravery for not telling her sooner.

"Anyway, I just wanted to come by and meet you before I left for Whirlpool for a few weeks. I wanted to come by and let you know that I'm only leaving because I need time to forgive Minato for keeping this secret from me. I'm not leaving because of you." I nodded in understanding before watching her get off of the bed and pulling me into a hug. I instantly tensed up before relaxing into it. It was surreal hugging the woman who was my mother and her having no idea of the truth. Her voice went soft for a moment. "I really hope that when I come back we can spend some time together and get to know each other."

I nodded and swallowed the lump in my throat. "I would really like that."

She smiled before walking out of the door. "Well, I'm going to go say goodbye to Minato and then I'll see you in a few weeks."

She left me standing there with the ugly truth. My father hadn't informed her of my existence until the time came for the rescue mission. If I hadn't been kidnapped then perhaps he wouldn't have told her at all. Did that mean he wasn't as proud of me as he claimed? Did that mean he actually didn't love me? Was everything that he did last night just an act? I growled low in my throat before taking off out the very same window Kushina entered. I needed to get my mind off my father's actions and onto something else.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Minato sighed as Sakumo tried to cheer his friend up, but to no avail. "Naru's not sleeping like she should and she's still not eating correctly."

Sakumo sighed. "She's only been in Konoha for a few days, Minato. She hasn't even been to therapy yet, so just give her some time to sort everything out. Naru's just trying to force herself into getting better before her body is ready. She's stubborn."

Minato smiled slightly before tensing as he felt the chakra of his lover and called out to her. "Kushina?"

Kushina walked into the room and snagged a piece of ham off of Minato's plate. "Morning. I'm leaving in a few minutes and just stopped by to say bye."

Minato looked up into her eyes. "Is there any way for me to change your mind about going to Whirlpool?"

Kushina shook her head. "Nope, I've already informed my father that I'm on my way. He expects me soon."

Minato sighed before standing up. "Do you want me to walk you to the gate?"

Kushina shook her head. "No, I'll see you in a few weeks."

Kushina leaned over and kissed Minato's cheek before disappearing in a swirl of leaves. Minato sat back down and sighed. "She's really going."

"Well, what did you expect? I told you to tell her earlier. You just better be glad Naru hasn't found out yet because she's not going to take the fact that her father kept such a huge secret from his lover very well." Minato glared at Sakumo before blinking and looking around the room.

"Sakumo, where did Kakashi go?"

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

It wasn't hard to leave the kitchen with Dad and Sensei not paying any attention to me and Kushina's entrance only gave me a greater chance to escape. I knew Naru better than she thought I did. Just like I knew she didn't really go back to sleep last night. I just decided to let her think I was in the dark about her true intentions. I headed upstairs to see if she was really going to stay on bed rest and I wasn't surprised to see the bedroom empty and the window open.

"Great Naru, take off without telling anyone. Do you want to give our fathers heart attacks?" I took one look around the room before taking off through the window and after the trail she left behind. Naru had a unique scent, it was hard to describe, but it was there. I noticed it after she first became a Genin and that scent was how I was able to track her and keep tabs on her when she got it into her mind to just up and leave. It was a woodsy scent, not animalistic, but woodsy. I would be insulting her to say she smelled like fox because she didn't smell like the animal. She smelled like a unique brand of tree and spring. She smelled like the world after a bout of rain, refreshing and strangely calming.

The trail led me right to her. She was standing in front of a training post and kicking the hard wood.

"You're supposed to be on bed rest Naru."

She stopped the kicking the post long enough to turn around and pin me to the ground with her glare. "Leave me alone Kakashi."

I shook my head before walking over to stand beside her. "Nope, you're going to hurt yourself. Tsunade said that you can't stress your muscles or you'll have to go back into the hospital."

"Well, I really don't care right now and since when do you listen to Baa-chan?"

I resisted the urge to smack her in the back of the head as I answered, "That's not the point Naru and you know it. I know you, Naru, and I can tell you're ticked off. So instead of injuring yourself, tell me what's wrong."

She huffed once before sitting down and glaring at the training post. "Dad didn't tell Kushina about me until the rescue mission."

I looked down at the ground. "Oh."

She turned to look at me. "You knew that didn't you?"

I finally looked into her eyes. "Well, not exactly, but I guessed he hadn't told her yet."

Naru quickly stood up and began stomping away. "Naru wait!"

"No! You said he loved me and you don't hide love! You don't do things like that!"

I raced after her and grabbed her arm, my first mistake. Her entire body tensed before she quickly turned around and attacked me. Her fist connected solidly with my jaw before I was able to push her away. Once she realized where she was at and who she was with, she looked away in shame.

"I'm so sorry Kakashi, I didn't…"

"No, it was my fault. I knew better than to grab you like that. No harm done."

She didn't look convinced, so I pulled down my mask and gingerly touched the jaw. It was sore to the touch, but it wasn't broken. "See? No harm done."

She walked over and gently inspected my jaw herself, not believing I wasn't hurt.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

His jaw didn't look broken, but it was swollen and would leave a pretty nasty bruise for the next few days. Kyuubi chuckled from within his cage. "You should kiss it to make it better."

I blinked as his words sunk in before blushing bright red. "Ero-fox."

The idiot fox's laughter made me smile. He was a pain in my neck, but in a strange way I missed his sarcastic comments and banter. He was like the annoying uncle in the movies that no one really likes and wants to leave, but they keep him around because he's family. In my case I keep him around because if I let him out he'd probably eat me and all of Konoha.

"I wish I could heal it, but that's never been my strong point Scarecrow."

Kakashi laughed and I blinked before noticing how adorable he looked when he laughed. I was almost tempted to take Kyuubi's advice. He stopped laughing and cradled his sore jaw for a few minutes before pulling up his mask.

"Naru, don't hold this against Sensei. I admit that he should have told Kushina sooner, but he just didn't know how to tell her and when he finally got the chance to he regretted not telling her sooner. He does love you, but he loves Kushina too. He didn't want to lose either of you."

I sighed before turning around and ignoring his plea. I wasn't going to drop the subject like it didn't bother me. Minato had a lot of questions to answer for and I wasn't going to just let them go unanswered. "We might as well go back to the house. It's almost noon and I've got to go meet with my shrink."

"Don't say that Naru. You might just find yourself liking Inoichi." I smiled at him as he grabbed my hand and tugged me forward. "Come on, we've got to get back to the house before they notice we're gone or I'm going to get into trouble from both of them for letting you leave."

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo and Naru walked calmly through the village, heading towards the Hokage Tower. While Naru's time in captivity wasn't a well-known fact around the entire village, there were some shinobi and civilians who knew she had been captured. Once Rafu's team was released from the hospital they informed Naru's friends and the truth had spread from there, especially once they heard Sakumo was leading the rescue team.

"Naru!"

Naru turned to see who was calling her name before waving at Raido. The boy ran to her and looked like he wanted to hug her, but backed off slightly. He stood a few feet away from her just in case she wasn't comfortable with being touched. He had no idea what the Iwa shinobi did to her and he refused to aggravate any bad memories from her time there. "You're back."

She nodded. "I've been back for a few days. Did everyone else make it back?"

The conversation was awkward, even for Naru. She didn't know how to answer his questions without making him feel bad. Raido was her friend and she didn't want him to feel guilty for leaving her with the Iwa shinobi. They were all injured and couldn't run after her blindly. They made the right decision that night and are one of the reasons she was rescued so quickly. They did return to Konoha in record time and inform the Hokage of the situation; Raido had nothing to be ashamed of. Naru gave him a small smile before walking over and hugging him. Raido tensed before hugging her back.

"I want to thank you for making it back to Konoha so fast and for getting everyone else back."

Raido smiled before letting her go. "So you're not upset that we couldn't go after you?"

"I would have been more upset if you would've gone after me and gotten killed. You did everything you could and it all worked out in the end."

Sakumo smiled before interrupting. "We've got to hurry Naru or we're going to be late."

Naru nodded before telling Raido goodbye and walking after her Sensei.

"Naru."

"Yeah?"

Sakumo turned and smiled at her. "No matter how strong or old you grow never lose that."

Naru blinked. "Lose what Sensei?"

"Your heart. Never let it become hardened by the world around you."

Naru smiled at Sakumo before wrapping her arms around him and softly thanking him. Sakumo grinned before patting her head and walking into the Hokage Tower and up to the Third's office. The ANBU stationed outside the doors instantly opened the large doors for the two shinobi to enter and watched as they both walked in through the doors. Naru shivered as both ANBU trained their eyes on her and watched her the entire time as she walked into the room.

The Hokage smiled at them both before walking over to greet them. "Good afternoon you two. Inoichi is waiting for us downstairs."

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

The walk to meet Yamanaka Inoichi was a short one. The Hokage Tower was made up of multiple levels with many rooms and halls. The Hokage's office was on the top most level and showed an amazing view of the village and the Hokage monument. I would be lying if I said the view wasn't one of the reasons I wanted to be Hokage. Okay, it wasn't the most important reason albeit it was a reason.

I had never been to every single level of the Hokage Tower before, only to the first couple. The Missions Room was located on the same floor as the Hokage's office. That way the incoming and outgoing shinobi could see their Hokage for mission details if they needed to. The level below the Missions Room was mostly offices, which is where my sessions would take place with Inoichi. The ground level floor was the one most shinobi used to enter the Hokage Tower, it also housed some of the meeting rooms. The lower levels were filing and storage for records. Millions of missions had been taken since the beginning of the village and all of that data was stored beneath the Hokage Tower in specialized scrolls designed to withstand any type of damage.

There were lower levels beneath those. Basement levels that I had never been in before, but they were there. I had no way of knowing what was in them and no way of knowing how to get to them. It was at that moment I realized just how similar the Hokage Tower was to a fort. It was protected by shinobi and traps and had creepy basements that could easily be used for cells. I fought down the shiver that raced up my back before running to catch up with Sensei and the Hokage.

The Hokage opened a door and greeted the young man inside. I had never met Yamanaka Inoichi before and only knew him as Ino's father from the future. We hadn't had very much contact, even after my capture by Akatsuki. After my Akatsuki capture, I refused all mental help from the Konoha Mental Department and Morino Ibiki refused to leave me alone until I talked to him about my experience. Ibiki handled my mental trauma and grew to be one of my most trusted friends. So needless to say, this was going to be an interesting session.

Inoichi looks very young, barely pushing twenty, but who am I to judge him on his age? I am a seven-year-old Chunin. Inoichi greets the Hokage back and even greets Sensei too. The greeting is slightly strained, as is his smile, but something tells me it's not over Sensei's supposedly dishonorable actions. Sensei takes it in stride before teasing the young man, which broke the tension in the room as Inoichi laughed.

"Well, Naru this is Inoichi and he's going to be your therapist. You'll meet with him every day until he deems you fit for missions again. Then you'll only see him if you feel the need to. You will be required to have a mandatory evaluation by him every month though just to make sure you're doing okay. It's protocol with every shinobi prisoner of war. Eventually you'll only have to see him for your annual mental evaluation like every other shinobi."

I nodded at the Hokage words before sizing up Inoichi. He didn't back down from my evaluation of him nor did he command me to stop. He simply let me stare at him until I was finished. I turned away from him and looked at the Hokage. "Thank you Hokage-sama."

Sensei and the Hokage walked out leaving just me and Inoichi. The man grinned my way before pointing to two chairs beside a huge desk. I sat down and waited for him to join me, but instead of sitting he walked over to the desk and pulled out a deck of cards. I raised an eyebrow at the deck of cards in his hand as he sat in the other chair and placed them on the table in between us.

"We've already been introduced, but I think it would be best if we introduce ourselves to each other. Just to break the ice. I'm Yamanaka Inoichi."

I nodded. "I'm Uzu Naru."

Inoichi smiled. "I must say, I've been waiting a long time to meet you especially after I missed the prank of the century, as the other Jounin are calling it."

I couldn't help but grin at his praise. "You weren't in the crowd that day were you?"

He shook his head before laughing. "No, but I must say I feel like I missed out because I wasn't there."

The first couple of minutes were kind of awkward as he tried to make me comfortable by joking with me and asking questions about my pranking hobby. It was almost painful how awkward it was, but Inoichi didn't seem bothered by the tension in the air. Ino had the same ability to ignore the emotions in the room and still be able to get her point across. It was obviously a family trait. He finally stopped talking and trying to force my answers by picking up the deck of cards and shuffling them.

"We're going to play a game, Naru."

I narrowed my eyes at him as my mind flashed back to similar words used by Shigure. Inoichi noticed my sudden change in mood and shrugged before beginning a game of solitaire.

"Well, if you don't want to play with me then I'll just have to play by myself."

I sighed before looking around the room in boredom; this was going to be a long session.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo turned to give the wooden door one last look before following after Sarutobi. He noticed the young man's apprehension when he walked into the room, but he figured it was because of his public image at the moment. Something told him that wasn't quite the truth. The Hokage silently walked beside him, the man's footsteps echoing down the hall as they headed to the meeting rooms. Sakumo slowly began to notice they were heading to the same chamber where the council decided his fate. "Hokage-sama, is Inoichi trustworthy with Naru?"

The Hokage laughed. "Ahh, so you noticed how apprehensive he was around you? He has a very good reason for that Sakumo. He has seen how protective you are of Naru, especially after the Chunin Exams."

Sakumo looked confused for a moment before trying to recall exactly who was in that room with the other interrogators. "Was he with the interrogators after Naru's interrogation from Hell?"

The Third nodded in amusement. "Inoichi is very flexible as a shinobi. He's an excellent psychology-nin, but at the same time would make a great addition to the T&I team. He was in the room of interrogators and saw firsthand how you handle those that mess with your student."

Sakumo sheepishly looked away. "Perhaps next time I should control my temper a little better."

Sarutobi grinned. "Well, you didn't cause any major damage, so no harm done and really, if you think about it, it's a blessing in disguise. Inoichi knows not to cross you."

Sarutobi stopped before the Council Chambers and turned to look Sakumo in the eye. "I should have done this a long time ago, but with everything else that's been happening it was pushed onto the back burner and for that I am sorry."

Sakumo tilted his head in confusion. "Hokage-sama, what exactly are we doing?"

The Hokage's grin grew larger. "The council is going to apologize to you for their slip of tongue over your ruling. I don't know who let it slip to the public, but all of them are responsible for not stopping this mess in the beginning. Also, I'm launching an investigation to see who switched the mission details. Hopefully, we'll have the culprit by the end of the week if not sooner."

Sakumo nodded in astonishment as the Hokage tossed the doors open and sauntered into the room with his head held high and Hokage robe flaring around his feet. He looked every bit of the powerful man he was in that moment. He was unchallenged in authority and speech. No one would cross him at this point. The Council Chambers went strangely quiet as they watched their leader walk directly to his chair before calling them into order

Nara Shikaku couldn't help but smile behind his folded hands as he saw the fire in the Hokage's eyes. The man was tired of tiptoeing around the council. Mentally, Shikaku agreed. It was time for the council to realize they couldn't let secrets such as these slip to the public.

"I've called you all here today over the situation regarding Hatake Sakumo. First off, I want to start off by seeing just how many members of this council let it slip about Sakumo's ruling."

The Hokage wasn't surprised to see a few hands hesitantly rise into the air. There were no written rules regarding council privacy and no specific rule that said the dealings in the Council Chamber couldn't be spoken of. However, the Third assumed they would have just let Sakumo complete his punishment without too much trouble. In the Hokage's mind, he figured the shinobi of the room would understand the repercussions this information could have on Sakumo's reputation and keep it to themselves, but sadly that wasn't the case. Uchiha Fugaku had been one of the hands raised in response to his question. Immediately the room filled with hushed whispers.

Now the Hokage didn't know that Danzo was the one who had spread the first rumor of Sakumo's failed mission. There was no possible way he could have known. He suspected the man of being power hungry, but he fully believed his one time friend wouldn't sink to that level. Yes, Sarutobi Hiruzen knew all about Danzo's ROOT ANBU and he knew about the man's passion to become Hokage, but he couldn't accuse Danzo of something he had no evidence of. The Third mentally mourned for his lost friendship with Shimura Danzo. They had at one time been complete opposites of each other and close as brothers. Though their opposite personalities and desires still reigned true, they had long since lost their closeness.

When Kakashi and Naru first told the Hokage of their secret, neither mentioned Danzo nor any of his deeds. Hiruzen worried for Danzo, but deep down he didn't want to know the truth, so he didn't ask the two from the future. His heavy heart had decided that not knowing was better than knowing. The traitorous voice in the back of his head also mentioned he hadn't asked Kakashi and Naru about Orochimaru. His other student Jiraiya insisted Orochimaru was heading down a dark path, but Hiruzen couldn't see it. He wanted to pass Jiraiya's observations off as nothing more than the same petty jealousy that had taken root as a genin. However, the complete honesty and worry in Jiraiya's eyes the morning the group left on their current mission was enough to make the Third wonder if Orochimaru really was becoming distant.

Sarutobi watched as some of the council members looked down at the floor. Most were wearing looks of shame. He sighed before speaking, "Honesty is always the best policy to have in times like these. I'm sure you have all seen and heard how the villagers and shinobi alike have been treating Sakumo and the two children that live with him. Sakumo being bullied because of his decision was harsh enough, but having two seven year olds get the same treatment is ten times worst. You can't take back what you've already said and done, but you can make it better. Hatake Sakumo deserves an apology and he deserves justice. Sakumo please enter."

Sakumo had been patiently waiting outside for the Hokage to call him in. Though he could have followed the man in, he thought it best to wait for his cue. The White Fang entered the chambers to see the clan heads calmly waiting for the next instructions. "Sakumo, you have already been informed of the proceeding here today, so there is no need to review that. I and the council do extend our deepest apologizes over everything that has happened to you and your family. I also want you to know that as of today, a full blown investigation will begin in order to discover the culprit behind the mission detail switch."

Sakumo bowed before finally letting a grin form on his face. The Hokage dismissed the council and nodded at Sakumo as he passed the man. Sakumo barely noticed that Danzo wasn't present at this meeting before Haruno Kin approached him. Sakumo blinked as the brown haired man with laugh lines decorating his face stood before him and bowed slightly. Sakumo couldn't help but be impressed that this civilian was the first one to approach him. The man smiled before apologizing. "Sakumo-san, I may have not spread the rumors, but I did nothing to stop them and for that I am sorry. You and your family are welcomed in any one of my restaurants anytime."

Sakumo thanked the civilian before more members of the council stepped forward to personally apologize to Sakumo.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I felt my left eye twitch as Inoichi shuffled through the deck of cards for the third time. In the last thirty minutes I discovered three things. One, the ticking of a clock was the single most annoying thing in the world. Two, there were exactly fifty-nine books in the bookcase and, most importantly, Inoichi could not play solitaire very well. I sighed before watching him scan the cards once more before resetting his game. This was about the fifth time he had reset the cards. I didn't know if he was doing it on purpose to annoy me or if he was really just that bad at playing cards.

I finally broke down as he shuffled through the deck of cards and missed a queen of hearts that could have been played on his king of clubs.

"Inoichi-san, you missed a card."

He slowly raised his head to look at me. "Hmm? Really? Where?"

I reached over the table and picked up the discarded queen before placing her on top of the king. Inoichi blinked in surprise before shrugging and going on with his game. He moved a jack of clubs onto the queen of hearts before adding a few more cards. I watched with disinterest as he went back to sorting through his cards, completely leaving a two of clubs right beside an open three of diamonds. I raised an eyebrow at Inoichi before moving the card for him.

Inoichi smiled at me before straightening the stack and turning the face down card over, the ace of diamonds was underneath the two of clubs. This is pretty much how the game went for the next ten minutes. I would silently fix his mistakes until we eventually started working together to finish the game.

Though he may have been hopeless at cards, he did have a fun side. Every once in a while, he would take one of the cards and drop it off the side of the small table. I would reach down and pick it up only to come back up and find the entire deck of cards stacked in correct card order according to suit, minus one card. The four stacks almost seemed to mock me as I glared at them. At first I was annoyed at his little game. Obviously he played me the entire time and I had already been played enough for my short lifetime, but then he took my card from me and stared at it intently.

He grinned at me. "I bet I can place this card in exact order without looking at the deck."

I was skeptical to say the least. It would be close to impossible to put one card in exactly the right spot without being off one or two. I watched intently as he showed me the eight of clubs before stacking all four stacks of cards together. He held the deck in one hand and the card between his fingers before shoving it between two cards in the stack. I watched as he spread the cards out in a line before flipping them over in one go.

My eyes widened as I saw the eight of clubs. It was between the seven of hearts and eight of hearts. I coughed to hide my chuckle as Inoichi blushed slightly.

"I may need to practice this more."

I nodded my head before picking up the eight of clubs. "Just a little bit."

We didn't do a lot of talking our first session. In fact, I believe I only said a handful of sentences. Inoichi didn't ask questions and he didn't try to force answers out of me. Our small conversation never even strayed anywhere near talking about Fort Kei and my time there. The awkward small talk made at the beginning of the session was as far as we had gotten. It seemed like a huge waste of time, but by the time Sensei dropped by to get me Inoichi was smiling more and paying me more attention.

It was at that point I realized exactly what he was trying to do. He was trying to make me comfortable with him before he started grilling me over Fort Kei. I sighed before turning to look at Sensei.

"How did your meeting go?"

Sakumo-sensei smiled at me as we walked past the marketplace and back to the house. "It went well Naru, a whole lot better than I could have hoped for."

I nodded before watching the clouds drift by overhead. Everything was looking up for Sensei. I couldn't help but wonder when everything would be better for me.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

After Dad and Naru took off to the Hokage Tower, Sensei and I were left at the house alone and bored. Sensei did try to clean the kitchen before giving up and sitting on the front porch lost in his own thoughts. I walked outside to sit beside him before turning to him.

"Sensei? Are you okay?"

He nodded his head before reaching over to ruffle my hair. "Nothing for you to worry about 'kashi. I'm going to be fine."

He quickly stood up before practically running inside. A few minutes later he came back out with blank scrolls and papers. He sat down beside me and spread the items in front of him. "Since Sakumo and Naru are out of the house, I figured we'd get some training done today. Now, we could work on your balance and agility or even start trying to increase your speed and flexibility, but I think something different is called for today." He spread the papers out and began to draw symbols on them, numbers and letters in strange patterns and designs, before stopping and showing them to me. "I didn't get to see you fight the Iwa ninja on our way back with Naru, but I did notice something the entire way there and back. We've got to increase those chakra reserves and fast."

I nodded in agreement. "I was going to talk to you about that Sensei."

He smiled. "Good, I was afraid you would deny it or something. I know exactly how stubborn you can be. Okay, I want to start increasing your chakra reserves, so I'm going to start teaching you the art of sealing. You asked a while back if I could teach you some sealing techniques and I think this would be a great way for you to not only learn, but also begin to increase your chakra reserves."

I sat up straighter as I tried to pay close attention to everything he was going to teach me. He held up the written on paper and began pointing to the different symbols and telling me each name. "First, we'll begin with learning the basic symbols used during sealing. Each symbol represents a different action or task and will only work in a certain order. Sealing doesn't require a lot of strength, but it does require for you to remember complicated patterns and sequences. It can be the hardest of the shinobi arts to learn, but it pays off even more than most jutsu or swordplay."

Sensei stopped before getting a faraway look in his eye. "Seals and the art of sealing are dated far back into our history. The first shinobi were nothing more than farmers in the fields, protecting their crops and family when they decided to try their hand at sealing. Their experiments to store massive amounts of weapons in smaller containers eventually gave birth to our own storage scrolls. The ability to store more weapons in a scroll than you can carry in a weapon's pouch has saved more lives than man can count."

He turned back to me and smiled brightly. "Which leads me to my next point. If you're serious about learning seals then you're going to have to put some hard work into it, Kakashi. I'm going to push you hard on this subject because your basic training in seals has to be done before we are deployed."

I couldn't help but blink at the urgency in his voice. "Why?"

He stopped to think before answering sheepishly. "It's more of a personal thing really. I feel that it would be very harmful to your sealing education if we had to stop in the middle. I also think it would help you if you had some sealing knowledge on the battlefield. You may be with Sakumo and me a majority of the time but there is _always_ the chance something could go wrong." I couldn't help but notice that he stressed the word 'always'.

I nodded in agreement. "Fine by me Sensei."

He shifted through the papers before pulling out a medium sized scroll. "This is every basic sealing symbol and meaning that you will need to know. I want them memorized in three days, Kakashi, and then we'll start going over drawing and adding chakra to the mix. The chakra part is where your chakra reserve conditioning will come from."

Sensei handed me the scroll and the papers before pointing to the chair on the porch. "Now get to studying."

He left me on the front porch to head inside and read over the latest newspapers that had collected on the steps.

I did as he said and studied until Dad and Naru returned home. Only then did I set the scroll down and greet them. Dad ruffled my hair as he walked by and Naru stopped to sit on the steps of the porch. She seemed so out of it and that bothered me.

"Hey Naru?"

She waved gently before turning to look at me. "Is it pathetic that I don't want to go inside and see him?"

I locked my eyes with hers. "I don't think so. It's normal to feel betrayed over something like this, but you've always just been so forgiving."

Anger filled her eyes as she snapped at me and hissed, "And remember what that got me Kakashi-sensei? A hole through my chest wasn't it?"

I winced before looking around to make sure Sensei and Dad weren't anywhere near us. The later memories were still the ones that stung the most. I, just like Naru, could still remember Sasuke's betrayal and our own near deaths. "Okay, that wasn't what I meant to say Naru."

"Well, next time think before you speak, Scarecrow."

I glared at her before speaking again. "What I meant to say was this, maybe this is a good time to step back and actually look at yours and Minato's relationship."

She narrowed her eyes at me. "Explain what you mean by that."

"Well, you've been so caught up in actually having a father that you've only seen the good side of having a parent. You've only seen the fun loving part, not the actual disciplinary figure he's supposed to be. I know him not telling Kushina about you was a huge blow to that perfect image you have him listed under in your head, but really Naru, what did you expect? Sensei's young and just kind of went along with everything after he found out he had a kid."

She cut me off. "I've already realized all of this Kakashi. I'm far more observant than you give me credit for."

I sighed. Just great, now she was lashing out at me too. "I know that, Naru. You've always liked to watch people and Sensei isn't an exception. I just wish it wouldn't have ended up like this, Naru. I'm not trying to make Sensei look like it's not his fault because it is his fault, but I don't want you to do something you're going to regret."

She stopped and turned to watch the trees blow in the wind. "Kakashi, this is something I just can't forgive easily. He's sweeping everything under the rug and not acknowledging that he didn't tell Kushina about me. If there is one thing Sasuke and Fort Kei taught me it's that forgiveness needs to only be given when someone deserves it. I'm tired of just smiling and pretending everything is okay."

She stopped talking and I couldn't help but feel sad for her. Forgiveness had always been one of Naru's special skills and for her to say things like that was a little scary. She sighed once more before standing up. "I'm going upstairs."

She took off upstairs, completely bypassing Sensei and Dad.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

Talking with Kakashi had been very intense. I could tell he didn't like the way I was talking and it bothered him, but I couldn't make myself care. I was angry and upset and I dared somebody to challenge me on how I felt. I knew my feelings were justified for what Minato had done. I couldn't even bring myself to call him dad because it hurt too much. Geez, who am I kidding? Not calling him dad hurt just as much as calling him dad.

I groaned as my head pounded beneath my temples. It hurt to think let alone carry on a mental argument with myself. Kyuubi was quiet, he knew not to even try and talk to me whenever I had a headache. I tended to get snappy whenever my head gave me problems and, lucky me, Kyuubi refuses to heal them, something about normal human occurrences and other nonsense.

I took off my forehead protector and sat it on the bed as I massaged my throbbing temples with my fingers. My bedroom door opened as Aki pushed it gently with her snout before scurrying inside and sitting happily on the floor at the foot of my bed. I smiled at her before picking her up and sitting her on the edge of the bed. Aki yipped happily before attacking the pillows. I scratched her behind the ears before going back to massaging my temples to dissolve the headache.

I wasn't paying as much attention to Aki as I should have been and she knew it. She didn't like being ignored. Though Kakashi would never admit it, everyone in the house knew he spoiled the little salt and pepper colored puppy. And just as a spoiled child will act out to gain the attention of others, Aki likes to do the same thing. She whimpered first before getting quiet. I figured she had simply given up on getting my attention and was going to find someone else to bother, but I was wrong.

I turned just in time to see Aki scamper out the door with my forehead protector clenched tightly between her teeth. To everyone else this wouldn't seem like something to get upset about, but that was the same forehead protector that had survived Fort Kei with me. Kakashi made sure to bring it home with me and seeing it run off like that was just something my mind couldn't take. I snapped.

"AKI! GET BACK HERE!"

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

"AKI! GET BACK HERE!"

Sakumo looked up in surprise as the little puppy bolted into the kitchen. Her small claws digging slightly into the wood as she came to a sudden stop before ducking underneath the table. Naru ran into the room moments later searching for the puppy that was cowering behind his leg.

"Where did the little mutt go?!"

Kakashi walked into the room and looked at Naru. "Who are you talking about?"

Naru didn't answer as Aki bolted from behind Sakumo's leg and tried to get to Kakashi. It was then Sakumo saw the forehead protector in the pup's mouth. Naru lunged towards Aki and grabbed the cloth end of the item. Aki let loose a snarl as she tried to tug the forehead protector from Naru's hand. Kakashi finally moved from the doorway to pick Aki up and take Naru's forehead protector out of her mouth. Aki whimpered as Naru sent her a heated glare before putting it on her head.

After Naru got her forehead protector back, all of the anger and annoyance slowly disappeared as she watched Aki whimper sadly in Kakashi's arms. Minato had been in the living room reading, but after hearing Naru and Aki tear through the house he just couldn't make himself concentrate on what he was reading. He stood at the doorway watching Naru as she walked forward and slowly took Aki into her arms.

"Sorry Aki. I didn't mean to yell at you."

Aki whimpered once more before looking up at Naru and licking the girl's nose affectionately. Naru giggled before scratching her behind the ears and walking out of the room, right by Minato without saying a single word. Minato blinked in surprise before looking back at Sakumo, who wasn't paying him any attention. Sakumo was too busy talking to Kakashi and scheming on ways to get Naru out of the house without stressing her out. "Son, go get on some old clothes and give Naru some too."

Kakashi raised an eyebrow in confusion. "Why?"

Sakumo smiled. "I have an idea."

Kakashi shrugged before heading upstairs.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

Twenty minutes later we stood outside waiting for Dad to come out. When he finally came out of the house he was carrying a bucket of bottles and a large box. I also noticed a few towels sitting on the edge of the porch beside the ninken's box of jerky. Dad sat the bucket and box on the ground before straightening up and clapping his hands together.

"Okay! I've got a huge job for you two."

Naru stood with her hands on her hips as she watched Dad begin to take bottles out of the bucket. "Sensei? What are we doing?"

"Oh, you're going to wash my ninken."

I groaned as Naru sighed before shaking her head. "That's child labor Sensei."

"Nah, it is only child labor if I pay you little to nothing for 18 hour days. I'm not paying you and this won't even take an hour, so it's considered a chore."

He smiled once more before slicing his thumb with a kunai and performing the hand signs for his ninken. Seeing the whole pack summoned brought back memories and made me long for my own ninken. Losing my faithful companions was one of the hardest things about being sent back in time. Dad's ninken were nice to see, but they weren't my pack.

I turned to look at Naru and saw her surprise at seeing the entire pack of ninken. She had never seen all eight of them together before and even I had to say it was a very daunting sight. The wolves were definitely intimidating, but once you were around them long enough their intimidation just sort of slipped your notice.

Dad's eight ninken were very different from my own ninken. While Dad had a contract with wolves, my contract was with dogs. It was my way of forcing myself away from his shadow without leaving canines behind completely. It also hadn't helped I was still mad at my Dad whenever I signed the contract and refused to accept any pack that reminded me of his. I pulled myself away from those thoughts as Naru stepped forward to look at the ninken closer.

"So Sensei, ya gonna introduce us?"

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo nodded before pointing. "Of course, Naru. This is my entire pack of ninken and everybody this is Naru, my student."

Naru rolled her eyes at Sakumo before waving shyly towards the ninken. Kakashi shook his head as Sakumo sat on the ground and began getting more supplies out of the box. The ninken began to laze about waiting for whatever Sakumo had planned for them. Kakashi stretched before beginning to point the individual ninken out to Naru.

"Since Dad's being lazy right now, I'll introduce you to the pack."

"I heard that Kakashi."

Kakashi winked at Naru before pulling her over to the pack. Shiri instantly rose to her feet and walked over to Naru. She whined before nuzzling Naru's hand. "I think you two have already met, but this is Shiri."

Naru nodded before petting the brown wolf. Shiri was the beta of the pack and coincidently mate of the alpha. She was a personal favorite of Sakumo and was the one he used to call on whenever he needed a babysitter for Kakashi. Shiri considered Kakashi close enough to being her own pup, regardless of his species, and it showed in how she doted on him. Shiri nuzzled Naru once more before turning to Kakashi and licking his fingers before reaching up and licking his face. The medium sized brown wolf was just tall enough to reach Kakashi's shoulders and gently nudged him until he got the hint to sit down.

Once Kakashi sat on the ground Shiri sat beside him and continued to lick his face. Kakashi's laughter made Naru smile as she walked over and sat beside him. Kakashi pushed Shiri off of him gently and pulled his mask down. Naru winced as she saw the bruise forming where she had hit him earlier. He couldn't help but notice Naru's wince. "Stop worrying about it Naru. Now Shiri here is mated to Kane. Kane's the alpha of Dad's pack."

The large white wolf stood up as his name was called and walked over to Kakashi. Shiri stopped babying Kakashi long enough to acknowledge her mate with a single lick to the snout before turning to Naru this time and checking her over too. Kane shook head before walking over to Sakumo.

"Kakashi, can any of them talk?"

Kakashi nodded his head. "To a certain extent they all can. Kane knows the basics of speaking, so does Shiri, but only Mei can speak fluently."

"Which one is Mei?"

"Shiri! Come here girl." Shiri stopped worrying over the two children as Sakumo called her over. It was then that Kakashi and Naru saw the bandages that were incased around her leg. She limped slightly as she walked over to Sakumo, who began undoing her bandages and checking her wounds. Kane sat beside her protectively and nuzzled her neck every time she whimpered when Sakumo touched a tender spot on her leg.

"Mei is the youngest female in the pack. I know you haven't met her yet. Dad usually doesn't call her until he needs a scout since she's the only one that can speak fluently. She's the tan one in the middle." Kakashi pointed to the smaller tan wolf lying beside a midnight black wolf.

Naru looked at Mei. "She has such a pretty fur color."

Kakashi nodded. "Shiri and Kane are her parents, if you wanted to know. She's just recently reached maturity and, as you can tell, the black wolf Lin has taken an interest in her."

Naru blinked before watching Lin scoot closer to the smaller tan wolf. It was getting closer to spring, closer to mating season for the wolves and they were already staking their claims on the unmated females. "Does Sensei breed them?"

Kakashi tiled his head in thought. "Actually, I haven't the slightest idea. I think I remember him mentioning it before, but it's not like he can stop them from breeding. I know he bred Shiri and Kane right before I was born, but the pups were all stillborn. Which is part of the reason she's so attached to me. Dad said my mom was the one that assisted with the delivery and tried everything she could to save the puppies, but nothing worked. After that Mom insisted Shiri stay in the house in order to recover. Dad said Shiri was so depressed after she lost her litter that even Kane couldn't get her to cheer up. Mom wasn't going to just let that go, so she started trying to help Shiri while Dad was gone. She tried everything before resorting to using me. Dad said I was about six months old then and had just started trying to stand up on my own. So I was falling over a lot and Mom was trying to keep me from bruising myself too badly while still getting her work done. Dad said she eventually just walked over to Shiri placed me beside her and told her to watch her pup. Shiri hasn't let me out of her sight since then."

Naru smiled sadly before watching the wind blow Kakashi's hair. "Your mom sounds like she was a nice lady Kakashi."

Kakashi nodded. "I guess she was. Anyway, the black wolf with the bandana around his neck is Lin. Dad used him and his brother Bran a lot during the Second Great Shinobi War. Bran's the smoky grey one that's missing an eye. They are great attack ninken and are fierce on the battlefield." Kakashi pointed to the other white wolf lying beside Bran. "That is Ryrie. She's the omega of the pack and a force to be reckoned with on the battlefield. She is more of a protector than a heavy hitter though. Give her something to protect and she'll fight tooth and nail to keep it safe."

Naru reached down and petted Ryrie's head. "She's gorgeous too. Why didn't Sensei call her while the villagers were tearing up the porch?"

"I guess Dad didn't want anyone to try and hurt her. He has a soft spot for his wolves, especially the females of his pack. It's almost as bad as his sweet tooth."

Naru smiled slightly before pointing to the medium sized wolf with brown fur. "That's Tobias right?"

"Yep, that's Tobias. Tobias and Shiri are actually littermates, which is why their fur is the same color. I guess they're the closest things to twins wolves can have. The final grey wolf, with the tip of his right ear missing, is Kirin. I don't think you've met him yet either, but he's…"

"Okay!"

Both Kakashi and Naru turned their attention towards Sakumo as he stood back up with Kane and Shiri on either side of him.

"It's been a while since the ninken have had a good bath and fun day, so I decided that's what we're going to do today. Plus, I had to make sure Shiri's leg was getting better. I need you two to start wetting them down while I get out the shampoo and other cleaning supplies. The water hose is on the other side of the house. It should reach around so don't worry about unhooking it. When you guys get back over here, fill up the huge basin and use the buckets to wash the ninken."

While Kakashi and Naru ran around the house to get the water hose, Sakumo turned to his ninken. Kane gave Sakumo a grin. "Play?"

Sakumo scratched Kane behind the ears. "Play as much as you like with them, but please let them actually clean you guys. Get them as wet as you want and make them laugh, especially Naru. I miss hearing her laughter. Don't go overboard though; she's supposed to be on bed rest. "

Mei walked to sit in front of Sakumo. "She's a very kind girl, Sakumo, but she has this aura of sadness around her right now." Mei wagged her tail playfully. "We'll make sure to make her happy again."

The other ninken nodded in agreement as Sakumo smiled. "Good luck you guys." The eight ninken patiently waited for the two Chunin to return with the water hose.

Kakashi stopped before looking back at the ninken waiting patiently for them. "Why do I have the feeling that this is going to end badly for us?"

Naru picked up the water hose before looking over her shoulder. "Because you know your father well enough to know he's scheming something."

Kakashi looked thoughtful for a moment before nodding. "Yeah, that sounds about right."

The two Chunin dragged the water hose back around the house and stood in front of the ninken. They had already filled the basin to the brim and were waiting to see how this experience was going to go. Naru crossed her arms across her chest. "Okay, who wants to go first?"

The ninken laughed and Mei took a step forward. "It's not going to be that easy. Sakumo said we get a fun day and we've decided how we're going to spend that day."

Kakashi and Naru looked towards each other in confusion as Kane stepped forward. "Catch us if you can."

The ninken immediately began to take off in different directions running around Kakashi and Naru, well everyone except Shiri. She howled before walking to sit beside Sakumo on the porch. Sakumo scratched her behind the ears before waving the two children on.

"You two better hurry or you won't catch them before the end of the day. I'll take care of Shiri and you guys can get the other seven."

Kakashi and Naru glared at the silver haired man before grabbing the buckets from the box of supplies and filling them up with water from the basin. Shiri shook her head before looking up at Sakumo. "Why?"

Sakumo snickered. "Ahh, a little exercise never hurt anybody and really this could be considered training for them."

Shiri sighed as Sakumo stood up and picked her up. "Your leg bothers me Shi. I want you to stay in the house tonight so I can make sure you're staying off of it. Kane will just have to do without his bed partner tonight." Sakumo placed Shiri on the ground beside the discarded water hose and began gently washing her brown fur.

"You spoil me Sakumo."

Sakumo smiled before lathering the ninken up. "I'm simply returning the favor. You've helped a lot with Kakashi and besides, what would I do without my faithful ninken?"

Shiri rolled her eyes at Sakumo before wickedly grinning and shaking the water from her body completely soaking Sakumo with the water. Sakumo flicked his wet bangs out of his eyes before glaring at the female ninken. "I hate you."

She reached over and licked his cheek. "Of course you do."

Sakumo laughed at her before picking her up and sitting her back on the porch. The front door opened slightly as Minato stepped out and let Aki outside. Sakumo waved to Minato before pointing to Kakashi and Naru. "Watch the show from the window. I promise you'll get a kick out of it."

Minato smiled. "Of course, it's not every day I get to see your ninken playing around like puppies."

Minato headed back into the living room to finish his reading and to watch the action from the window. Sakumo noticed how shy Aki acted around Shiri, almost skittish. Sakumo whistled softly for the puppy. "Come here girl."

Aki took a small step forward before racing towards Sakumo and into his lap. Shiri blinked at the little salt and pepper colored bundle of fur before looking closer to the shivering puppy. Sakumo shook his head in amazement. "You'll take on fully grown men, but another animal terrifies you? Little one, we've got to rework your fears, it's supposed to be the other way around."

Aki yipped at Sakumo before looking at Shiri, who gently sniffed the puppy before licking her snout. Aki stopped shivering and bravely took a step out of Sakumo's lap and onto the wooden floor of the porch. Shiri looked at Sakumo. "Her name?"

"Aki, she's Kakashi's puppy."

Shiri nodded before picking Aki up by the back of her neck and settling the puppy beside her. Aki blinked before cuddling up close to the female wolf. Sakumo smiled before watching Shiri baby Aki just like she babied Kakashi.

* * *

"Scarecrow, I'm beginning to hate your dad."

Kakashi nodded before pulling his mask back up, getting completely into ninja mode. "I say he deserves another pranking after this." Kakashi sighed before looking at the water in his bucket. "Well, all we have to do is get them wet and that shouldn't be too hard."

Naru nodded. "Okay, so we're pretty much chasing after them."

Kakashi nodded and began to take off after the frolicking ninken before stopping and turning to look at Naru. "I forgot, you're supposed to be on bed rest."

Naru rolled her eyes. "Kakashi, when have I ever listened to Tsunade or any of the medic nins? On second thought, when have you ever listened to them?"

Kakashi tilted his head before laughing. "You've got a point there." They both took off after the wolves with their buckets of water.

* * *

Sakumo couldn't help but grin as he watched Naru and Kakashi chase after his ninken. They actually looked like children while tossing buckets of water and laughing as the ninken let themselves get drenched with the water. Shiri nodded her head in approval as Naru twisted around Mei and soaked Kane in water. Kane in turn shook the water off of his body and onto Naru. Naru's pout was just too cute as she glared at the white wolf.

Kakashi laughed as a soaking wet Bran glared at his master's son. Lin came to his brother's rescue and made sure to gently tackle Kakashi to the ground before slobbering on the boy. Kakashi scrunched up his nose in disgust as he wiped the slobber off of his face and tackled the wolf back in retaliation. Naru watched as the two playfully wrestled together in the grass, it looked like a game long since perfected through years of play. Something about the way Lin skirted around Kakashi and how Kakashi knew exactly how to get the wolf to the ground told Naru they had played like this before.

Naru couldn't help but notice how comfortable Kakashi was playing with the ninken and remembering how uncomfortable he was around other children. Naru had always been observant and she saw things other people usually didn't. She saw the happiness in Kakashi's eyes whenever he was with the ninken and she saw the sadness in his eyes that they weren't his pack. Naru knew Kakashi missed Pakkun and the others, just like she missed her toads.

Mei quietly walked behind Naru and playfully nipped her fingers. "I think we're wet enough now. We'll let you guys wash us." Naru nodded before patting the wet fur on top of the tan wolf's head and walking over to help Kakashi. Lin backed off and sat down as he watched Naru pull Kakashi to his feet. The laughter danced in Kakashi's eyes as he looked around at the soaking ninken.

"Come on, let's go get the shampoo."

Sakumo ended up helping Kakashi and Naru finish shampooing the wolves and washing them off. He also ended up getting just as wet as they did, if not more. The ninken loved teasing their master and made sure he got his fair share of getting wet. Sakumo shivered as he dried off. Though it was almost Spring it was still chilly weather. Sakumo watched as Naru and Kakashi both gave a little shiver as the wind blew in their direction.

Kakashi dropped the towel on the ground as he finished drying off Kirin. The wolf nuzzled his hand before shaking himself off some more, his fur fluffing out even more and blowing in the wind. Naru giggled at the fluffy wolf before petting some of the fur down and wrapping her arms around herself. "I'm freezing Kakashi."

"I think we're through here. Hey Dad?"

"Yeah?"

"Can we go dry off now?"

Sakumo nodded before pointing to the box of jerky. "Just hand me that box before you go inside okay?"

Kakashi ran over to get the box and handed it off to his dad. Sakumo smiled at his son before ruffling the damp silver hair.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I can honestly say I had fun washing the ninken. I was wet and freezing, but I had fun. I was actually surprised I didn't have an episode over the temperature. Coldness and being cold has always been a problem for me. I have always associated cold with loneliness and since my capture by Akatsuki, death. Call me crazy, but that's just how I feel about it. I would rather be warm and laughing than cold and shivering any day.

I shivered once more as I began walking toward the house, Kakashi noticed my discomfort. "There should be towels in the living room, Naru." I thanked him before heading into the house and running smack into my father.

"Hey sweetie."

I glared at him. I glared so hard that I wished my glare would burn him into the ground. He took a step back before blinking in surprise. I just wanted to get around him and to the towels sitting on the couch and I would be fine. I just needed to get warm again and then I would worry about him.

"Naru? What's the matter?"

I tried to go around him, but he quickly moved in front of me and got in my way. I was beyond angry with him. How dare he try to act like nothing was wrong! I took a deep breath before pointing to the towels. "I need a towel."

Dad smirked before picking up the towels and pointing to them. "These towels? Hmm, I don't think I want you to have them."

I raised an eyebrow at him. "Towel. Now."

He laughed. Did he not see that I was dead serious? I wasn't playing with him. I wanted that towel. "You're ordering me around little girl? Geez, you're starting to sound as bad as Etsu was during her punishment."

I froze. He did not just compare me to that girl. I narrowed my eyes even more at him. "Just shut up and hand me the towel."

Anger flared up in his eyes as he held the towel higher in the air. "I don't think I want to give you the towel, especially not after you've disrespected me like that."

I snarled at him. "I think I'm the one that's been disrespected here."

"What are you talking about Naru?"

I didn't answer him. Kakashi and Sensei walked in and I took off towards the laundry room. There should be towels in there too and I wasn't about to just sit there and let him be a jerk. My only problem was he followed me and continued to harp on my nerves with his questions and sly joking. "Geez Naru, when did you start acting like such a girl? If you keep this up we'll need to paint your room pink and dress you in frills."

I had tried to ignore him as I tore through the laundry room in search of towels, but that final comment just made me snap. I finally found the towels in the dryer and in anger I jerked a towel out of the machine and slammed the door shut, right on top of my fingers.

Tears welled up in my eyes at the pain as the words started flowing from my lips. Kakashi walked into the room with wide eyes as I clutched my hand to my chest. He hissed my name repeatedly to get my attention, as Dad stood there transfixed by my words. At that point I didn't care what I said or how loud I said it.

"Damn dryer! Oh fuc…"

" _Naru!"_

"Son of a bit…"

" _Naru!"_

"That Fuc…"

" _Naru shut up!"_

"…king hurt!"

Kakashi finally made his way over to me after he saw that hissing at me wasn't going to get my attention or shut me up. He shook my shoulder slightly to get my attention and drag me out of my cussing fest. Sensei was standing at the laundry room door with a shocked look on his face as Kakashi whispered in my ear. "Why don't you listen?!"

I glared at him before cradling my already healing fingers against my chest. "Well, I was in pain!"

Dad had gone from shocked to downright angry. "Where did you learn those words?! You're seven years old; you shouldn't know or use those words young lady! You are in so much trouble with me right now!"

I growled at him. "What gives you the right to tell me what I can and cannot do?"

"Because I'm your father!"

I stopped talking and glared hard at him before lashing out in my anger and disappointment. "My father? You can't call yourself my father when you couldn't even admit to your lover that you have a daughter! You lost the right to decide what's best for me at that point! Did you think I wouldn't find out the truth? Did you seriously think you could keep us apart so you wouldn't have to man up and actually tell her? Oh grow a pair Minato, and stop being such a coward!"

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

Now that was the Uzumaki Naru I remembered. Though telling her father to grow a pair may not have helped her case at all. Sensei was angry, really angry. I had never seen him that mad looking before and trust me, I had tried just about everything to push that man's buttons. I immediately decided that it might be best for me to leave and to take Dad with me. He looked like he was in enough shock as it was. I slipped away from Naru and around Sensei before grabbing my father's hand. "Dad, I think we might need to let them talk this out."

Dad nodded before running a hand through his still damp hair. "Yell it out you mean. They better not break anything."

Dad led me outside before stroking his chin in thought. "Come on Ka-chan, we'll just go to the Paradise for a little while."

I nodded in agreement before walking beside him. I looked back at the house for just a few moments before turning around. They had to work out their differences or they would never have a healthy relationship. Naru needed to learn that Minato wasn't perfect and he wasn't going to get perfect overnight. Heck, even my dad wasn't perfect, but he was a good dad and he only got good through practice and learning. I just hoped they could work through it.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

"You don't understand Naru; I love Kushina and didn't want to lose her. She was my most important thing at the time you came along."

"And if she wouldn't have accepted me then what? Would you have just forgotten about me and pretended I didn't exist?"

Dad shook his head. "No. I was fully prepared to let her go."

I glared at him. "You're lying about that. You say you were ready, but your eyes are saying something completely different."

"There is no way you can tell that Naru."

"I'm aware of a lot of things Minato. I watch people and see things they themselves don't like to admit and don't want to admit. I know your insecurities and I know your fears just by watching you."

Dad rolled his eyes at me. "You're being annoying Naru. I don't have time for this. I'm just going to give you a punishment and then we'll forget this ever happened."

"Hell no! I want the truth! Do you love me? Did you ever love me? Why didn't you tell her? And don't give me that crap about loving her. We both know you could have loved both of us."

I watched as he finally broke in front of me. His eyes were filled with anger and his face became red from yelling. "What the hell do you want from me Naru? I'm 24 years old and a powerful shinobi with huge dreams! You just kind of showed up with this sob story about having a dead mother whose last wish was for you to become a shinobi. What did you want me to do? Toss you in the street? I've never backed away from my mistakes and I wasn't about to start then."

He stopped talking as he realized what he said. It hurt; it was so painful to hear those words. "A mistake? That's all you think of me?"

He actually looked sorry at that moment as he tried to backtrack. "Naru, sweetie, I didn't mean that. I was just angry."

I shook my head. "No, no, no. You did mean that! I can see it in your eyes. You're such a people pleaser. Always smiling and trying to hide the fact that you're really unhappy. You didn't even do anything to Jiraiya after he tried to interrogate me!"

"Don't bring him into this!"

"I have every right to bring him into this! You did nothing for me. You've never done anything for me. Sakumo's been more of a father to me than you have."

"You know that's a lie! I've been there for you plenty of times. So don't you dare try to say I haven't! I've bent over backwards for you and I have loved you! I still do love you Naru!"

We both stopped talking and our heavy breathing filled the laundry room. I had said some things that weren't all the way true just like he had said some things he didn't mean. I didn't care though. I was still so upset and so angry at him.

"Well Minato, I think we've reached a standstill here. I'm going to bed and I really don't want to see you anymore today."

I began to stomp away, leaving him in the laundry room. I went to my room and slammed the door shut. Once in the room I paced and went over the conversation in my head. We were both so stupid. I grabbed the pillow and muffled my angered screams and face down in the pillow was exactly how Kakashi found me.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

We stayed at the Paradise until the sun began to set. When we finally did return home it was to a quiet house and a note on the door. Dad sighed before taking the note off of the door. "Minato and Naru had a huge argument and they didn't accomplish anything but yelling at each other according to this note. Minato went to train and Naru's upstairs. I'm going to go see about Minato, why don't you go make sure Naru's okay."

I nodded and walked into the house as Dad disappeared in a swirl of leaves. I stopped and watched the leaves swirl for a few minutes; I really needed to relearn that jutsu. I sighed before heading upstairs and to Naru's door. Aki followed me up the stairs and waited at Naru's door with me.

"Naru, let me in. We've got to talk."

A muffled voice was heard from inside the room. "No."

"Come on Naru, let me in or I'll kick the door down. Your choice."

I heard a grunt and soon the door slammed open and bounced off of the wall. I looked behind the door and saw that a dent had formed where the doorknob had struck it.

"What happened Naru?"

She sat on her bed and glared at me. Her eyes were bloodshot, but she didn't look like she had been crying. I sighed once more before sitting beside her on the bed. "Okay, seriously Naru, tell me what happened."

She went on ignoring me before giving me a look that clearly said 'mess with me and I'll kill you with my pinky.' I chewed my bottom lip before mentally going over any action that would get her to talk to me, even if it was yelling at me. The silent treatment was possibly the worst punishment Naru could ever give anybody. It was strange not hearing her laughing and talking loudly, almost like the warmth left the room.

So I went back downstairs and picked up the papers I had to study. Then I went into my room and pulled out my copy of the book of folklore. If I was just going to sit in there, then I was going to use my time wisely. I sat there and studied while Naru sat in disgruntled silence. Each paper flip echoed in the room and seemed louder than the one before it.

After studying the papers for about an hour, I moved on to reading more of the stories out of the book of folklore. Randomly flipping the pages, I landed on the story of the Monkey King Goku and his many adventures. Funny, Goku reminds me of Naru.

That thought was what brought about the greatest idea I had in a long time, well since the Jounin prank. I knew exactly how to get Naru's attention. If she got to call me 'Scarecrow,' then I was going to pick a nickname for her. I stared at her for the longest time, trying to pick between the two I had thought of. I grinned as she noticed I was staring at her. "What are you looking at Scarecrow?"

"I'm trying to decide between the two nicknames I have picked out for you." I wanted to laugh as she glared at me.

"I really don't need a nickname."

"Oh but you do! It's not fair that I have one and you don't. Want to see my first pick?" She nodded and I showed her the Monkey King story.

"There is no way on heaven or earth that I'm going to let you nickname me after the monkey king!"

I smiled beneath my mask. "So you'd rather have the second one?"

"I'd rather have anything than 'Goku.'"

I nodded in joy before placing the book on the floor. "Good, 'cause I liked 'Fishcake' better anyway."

The entire room lapsed back into silence before a very undignified shout echoed around the room. "WHAT?!"

I nodded once more. "Yep, you are officially Fishcake now."

Naru's left eye twitched. "Why Fishcake?"

"Well, the word 'naruto' means fishcake. You know those little swirly things in ramen?" Her glare told me everything I needed to know. I eye smiled at her. "Well, your name is only two letters short, so I figured it was close enough for me to call you Fishcake."

"I hate you."

"Ahh well, you'll get over that too. So Fishcake, how about we talk about what happened with Sensei?"

She glared at me once more before beginning to talk. "We had a huge fight. We both did some yelling and said a lot of stuff we didn't mean to say. He called me a mistake and I told him he was a coward and had done nothing for me. We both got pretty brutal and loud. I told him I didn't want to see him anymore and I left him standing in the laundry room."

I nodded as I took all the information in. "Okay, there's nothing wrong there. It's all easily forgivable. You were both angry and said things you shouldn't have."

"Don't try to downplay this Kakashi because it's a serious problem. I don't even think I want to be in the same room with him let alone talk to him. In fact, I refuse to talk to him."

"Naru, you're being overdramatic."

"No I am not! You're not taking this seriously Kakashi. You don't understand where I'm coming from. You've got the perfect father, who would never forget to tell someone about you. He called me a mistake Kakashi. Has Sakumo ever called you a mistake? Probably not."

I couldn't believe the words that where coming out of her mouth. My Dad wasn't perfect. He made the same mistakes Sensei was making only he learned from them. Sensei was just young and needed Naru to help him along. Her being angry with him wasn't going to help him along that well though. "Naru, my Dad isn't the perfect dad. He's far from it. He's made mistakes and he knows that he has. The key is that he learned from those mistakes. Sensei's a good dad, 'cause he does love you. I know he loves you because I've seen it in his eyes. He would do anything for you. Whenever we were returning from getting you back from Fort Kei, I wish you could have seen the love in his eyes while he was worrying over you."

Naru was quiet for a minute. "You still don't understand Kakashi. Sakumo-sensei just hasn't done anything as serious as Dad."

I looked away before shaking my head. "Yes he has. You say my Dad's perfect; well, he's not. The night he planned to kill himself, we got into a huge argument and I called him a coward. He was so angry that he snapped and hit me. I hit the desk hard enough to bite a hole through my lip and bruise my cheek."

"That doesn't count Kakashi. Those were extenuating circumstances. He was most likely drunk and he hadn't slept a full night for about five weeks when that happened. He was stressed out and, well, suicidal. That doesn't count."

I blinked in surprise; did she seriously just shoot down my personal example of Dad's parenting mistakes?

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo eventually found Minato busting apart training posts in one of the Jounin training grounds. Three were already laying in pieces around Minato's feet as a Rasengan was blazing in his hand. Sakumo waited until Minato sensed him before approaching.

"She hates me Sakumo."

Sakumo shook his head. "She doesn't hate you, Minato. She's angry and hurt but she doesn't hate you. I doubt that girl has the ability to really hate someone, especially not the dad that she loves."

Minato let the Rasengan disappear as he flopped to the ground. "I made a mistake Sakumo. Actually I made many mistakes. I was so angry that I just lost my temper. I told her that I took care of my mistakes and then was kind of rude about her just showing up. I told her she just kind of showed up with a sob story. God Sakumo, I've completely screwed this up. I lost my lover and my daughter all in the same day. Who's next? My student? You?"

"Minato…"

"No Sakumo, don't interrupt me. I really do love her. I do. I was ready to give Kushina up, but I was so afraid of losing her, Sakumo. I met Kushina right after my parents died and she was the one constant in my life. It's not like when Kakashi was born. You and Nozomi had nine months to prepare for this welcomed interruption in your life. I had a day, Sakumo, and I laughed whenever I saw the truth. I have no idea how to be a father. My own was constantly on missions and was only there to teach me. I'm not perfect. I'm not a good of a dad as you."

Sakumo rolled his eyes. "I'm far from perfect, Minato, and you're right. Nozomi and I had planned for Kakashi. We had more than nine months to get ready for a child, but you also forget that I had to learn how to be a dad just like you've got to learn. Yeah, some things are just instinct like whenever something or someone is scaring your child. You're willing to do anything to make it stop. Minato, you're not a bad father, you're young and you just weren't fully ready. After Nozomi died I had to learn the same things you are going to have to learn if you and Naru are going to get over this. I made mistakes and you'll make mistakes. Heck, this won't be the last mistake you make. I'll admit I told you that you should have told Kushina about Naru, but that damage has already been done. You can't go back and change it, but you need to sit down and talk to your daughter before you lose her."

"Sakumo, it's not the same. Name me one time you ever did something that hurt Kakashi in any way."

Sakumo held up three fingers. "I've made many decisions that have hurt and helped Kakashi, but I know three right off the top of my head that I regret the most. The night I was going to kill myself I was drunk and stressed and not in my right mind. Kakashi found my seppuku setup and he became enraged and he yelled and screamed and finally called me a coward. I snapped and slapped him across the face. I hit him so hard that he bounced off of the desk. Minato, I could have killed him if he would have hit that desk harder."

Minato was quiet. "Yeah, but you were drunk. I wasn't drunk when I called Naru a mistake. I wasn't drunk whenever I decided to not tell Kushina about Naru. I wasn't drunk when I resorted to childish tricks to try and talk to my daughter when I knew she was in discomfort from the cold. I guess it just completely escaped my mind that she is recovering from being tortured in an Iwa controlled fort. What was I thinking Sakumo?"

Sakumo sighed before holding up his second finger. "Kakashi is allergic to peanuts. It's not a horrible allergy and he probably wouldn't die instantly if he ate them, but it's something that could cause him damage. Kakashi was about three years old and I just returned home from a weeklong mission. I was so tired that I just randomly grabbed something from the takeout diner and headed straight home. I figured kung pao chicken would be something really nice to have after a long mission and Kakashi didn't eat much, so I was just going to let him have part of mine. I got home, relieved the babysitter, and we started eating. I completely forgot about the peanuts in the chicken and to this day I still don't know how I forgot about them. Kakashi's throat swelled and he couldn't breathe. I thought he was going to die in my arms, Minato. I got him to the hospital though and he survived. I spoiled him rotten after that. I would have given him anything if he asked for it. I had never felt guiltier in my entire life and I felt like a complete failure as a father."

Minato whistled. "Wow. That's pretty serious, Sakumo, and I'm not trying to downplay that in any way, but that was a mistake on your part. I knowingly had opportunities to tell Kushina about Naru, but I kept pushing it away until I'm sure Naru's never going to forgive me."

"She'll forgive you, Minato."

Minato shook his head. "No she won't. She hasn't forgiven me yet, so she's never going to do it."

Sakumo sighed. "I really hate to say this, but I told you so."

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

"Okay, Sensei fed you peanuts big deal."

I deadpanned at her. "Geez, thanks Naru, I almost died that time."

"Well, you didn't so it doesn't matter. Yeah Sensei made mistakes, but he didn't lie to you. I'm not mad that he's making these mistakes, I'm mad because he lied to me. He said he was proud of me and yet he refused to tell his lover about me. We've been over this already, Kakashi. Anyone could have forgotten about something like that. What Dad did was worse."

I sighed before stretching; it was getting late. "I have one final thing that is very similar to what Sensei did to you. I can think of one huge time that Dad lied to me and it made me furious."

Naru gave me a 'this better be good look' and I began my final story for the night. "Right before I graduated from the academy Dad started dating again. I don't remember the girl, but I remember her being a kunoichi. Long story short, he lied to me about going out with her. He would make up these stories about having to help out a comrade and about missions taking later than usual. He would come home long enough to make sure I was fed and then he would leave and not come back until late. One day the academy let out earlier than usual and Dad had to take me with him to deliver his mission report. We met up with her leaving the Hokage Tower. I wasn't a stupid or unobservant child and I noticed my father's hands as they gently brushed against hers and I noticed how she spoke to him."

Naru was quiet for a minute. "How did you find that out?"

"Though they tried to be discreet about it, she slipped up and called him 'Saku.' The pet name was enough to prove my suspicions."

"What did you do?"

I gave out a rough laugh as I remembered exactly where I went. "I don't remember my mother, Naru, but I've always felt connected to her. That day, at five years old, I went to the only place I could think of going, to my mother's grave. I ran away while Dad was with his girlfriend and didn't care how angry he was going to be with me. I was so angry with him, not because he was disrespecting my mother's memory, but because he didn't feel like he could tell me about her. He lied to me and it hurt."

"Did he find you?"

I nodded. "It was getting dark by the time he found me. I was sitting in front of Mom's grave just waiting for him and once he got there he sat down beside me. He apologized before telling me he had broke it off with the kunoichi. I was even angrier then and I yelled at him. I yelled and cried and he just let me. He apologized a couple more times before finally picking me up and taking me home. Once we got home we talked everything out, which is exactly what you and Minato are going to have to do, talk everything out."

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

"Kakashi ran away from you?"

Sakumo nodded sadly. "But can you blame him? Minato, I had lied to him and made myself look like a hypocrite. I couldn't even tell him about my girlfriend and yet I was letting him go to the academy. The great part of the story though, is the fact that after Kakashi and I sat down and talked everything out we were fine. Yeah, I let Kakashi yell at me, but after that anger was gone we were able to hold a steady conversation, which is what you and Naru are going to have to do."

Minato rubbed his eyes before sighing. "It may be best to let her cool down first, but I'll try to talk to her Sakumo. I'll try."

Sakumo nodded. "That's all I ask Minato."

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

Kakashi amazed me. Actually, he always seems to amaze me. He had gotten quiet after his story, utterly proving his point that Sakumo-sensei wasn't always perfect and let me think things over. Perhaps I had overreacted about him not telling Kushina. Well, I still felt justified about my anger, but I did feel guilty about accusing him of not loving me. I knew he loved me and as my mind flashed back to the nights he spend humming his throat raw just for me and going out of his way to help Sensei just for me, I knew then I was wrong about accusing him of not loving me.

I sighed before turning to Kakashi, who had picked up his papers and was studying once more. "I'll talk to him later this week. I'm still mad, Kakashi, and I just need time to think everything over."

Kakashi nodded. "He'll wait for you Naru. Just don't rush anything and everything will fall into place."

I smiled at him before looking at the clock on the wall. It was late and I was tired, but I didn't feel like I was going to get a lot of sleep.

"Kakashi, will you stay with me tonight?"

Kakashi nodded before hopping off the bed and flipping off the lights. I crawled into bed and moved Kakashi's papers onto the bedside table. He climbed into the bed beside me and sighed as he lay down. I closed my eyes and wished for sleep to come, but every time I drifted into sleep, horrible images assaulted my senses. I ended up bolting from bed after sleeping for only two hours. Kakashi stirred beside me and rubbed his eyes before yawning. "Lie back down Naru."

"Sorry, I had a nightmare."

Kakashi blinked heavily before asking, "How long have you had nightmares?"

"Since coming home."

"So you didn't have them before the other night?"

I shook my head before turning away from Kakashi. "I'm going back to sleep. Goodnight."

"G'night."

I waited until Kakashi's breathing was even before rolling onto my back and staring at the ceiling above. It looked to be another long night for me.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Tsunade sighed as she looked at the man in front of her and noticed his strange hair color and kind looking face. Orochimaru had done a very good job of trapping the man in place, not that the man looked like he was going to run from them, but it never hurt to be safe. Jiraiya looked the man up and down before stepping forward. "Who are you and what business do you have so close to Fire Nation borders?"

The man with a black cloak lying at his feet smiled before bowing slightly. "I mean no harm. I've simply come to right a wrong."

Orochimaru hissed like one of his summons. "That doesn't tell us who you are or what you're doing here."

The strange haired man nodded his head. "I am the ex-interrogator at Fort Kei. I am Shigure and I need to speak to your Hokage."

Jiraiya blinked in surprise before laughing. "Did you honestly think we were going to let you just see the Hokage? You'd kill him, given half a chance."

Shigure shook his head. "No, I've come to deliver information. Important information about some of Iwa's plans and also some information on the blonde haired girl, Naru."

Tsunade hid her surprise before asking her own question. "Naru? What's wrong with Naru?"

Shigure looked scared. "We forgot something when we had her. No, I forgot something and she's suffering because of it. The genjutsu never wore off."

Jiraiya sighed before turning to his teammates. "We'll take him to the prisoner of war camp and they can deal with him to see if what he says is true. I'm sure Shima would love to get his hands on an Iwa interrogator."

Tsunade and Jiraiya nodded in agreement. Shigure looked like he was going to cry as he pleaded one last time. "Please, Naru needs help or she'll go crazy."

"Shush you. We need quiet or we'll kill you and leave your dead body."

One week later nothing had changed in the Hatake household. Minato and Naru just weren't talking to each other. Minato was killing himself over it and Naru was still trying to cool down to the point of being able to talk to Minato. Progress was very slow, but it was getting there.

About three days into the new week, the Third Hokage called Minato and Sakumo into his office with news to tell them. "I'm going to try and make this quick so you two can go back to Naru. I am pushing back both of your team's deployment dates. I just really don't want Kakashi and Naru on the battlefield without one or both of you. When you will be deployed depends on how Naru's therapy goes from here on out. Inoichi says that no huge progress has been made concerning Fort Kei, but he said they did talk about something bothering Naru. He feels they needed to get this out of the way before they tackled Fort Kei."

Minato looked slightly guilty before nodding. "Everyone except Naru will return to active duty by the end of this week. Naru has been taken off of active duty, but I want to have her as an assistant here in the Hokage's office with me. She has to be here for her sessions anyway and I know how bored she would be at home alone. Her time as my assistant will count as a mission and she'll receive pay for her time here."

The Third cleared his throat before continuing. "Just to clear some things up, Etsu did continue her punishment under another Jounin and they followed a similar training regimen that you had planned for her. She suffered and seems to have a new look on life. Oh, and during the week, we've rounded up a list of the ten suspects that could have switched the mission details on your mission to Fort Kei, Sakumo. Would you like to see it?"

Sakumo nodded before grabbing the list from the Hokage, the seventh name on the list was Rafu. Sakumo's grip tightened on the paper before locking eyes with the Hokage. "Thanks for letting me see this Hokage-sama."

The Hokage nodded before taking the list back. "We're starting investigations tomorrow."

Sakumo nodded with a grim smile on his face, he already had a clue who switched the mission details.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

Meeting with Inoichi wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. He was actually a really good listener and let me belly ache about my dad. He let me take out all of my anger before actually sitting down and talking about the reason why I felt that way. After our latest session I asked him why he hasn't pushed the Fort Kei issue and he simply answered that he had all the time in the world to find out the truth. I was the one that had to decide when I was ready to tell him about it.

I really did like Inoichi for that reason right there. He didn't push me to talk about Fort Kei and when I was rambling about my dad, he was more than willing to talk it over with me. I didn't want to admit it, but perhaps Kakashi was right after all. I would never admit that to him or I would never live it down.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Danzo tore the paper in anger before tossing it at the trashcan. "He tore it up?"

The shinobi in front of him nodded once. "He looked at a picture, smiled and tore the contract up."

Danzo growled. Not only had Hiruzen 'accidentally' forgotten to call him for a council meeting, Hatake refused to give Naru to him. Danzo took a kunai from his weapons pouch and angrily tossed it into the wall, the metal stuck into the wood.

"I'm going to get that girl if it's the last thing I do!"

* * *

Sakumo's mind swirled with the news he had just learned as he walked back to his house with Minato. Rafu was on the list of suspects; the same man that hated his guts. Sakumo stopped before turning around and heading towards Nozomi's grave. "I'll be back Minato. Don't forget to talk to Naru." Minato nodded and Sakumo continued his journey.

Once he reached the graveyard he found a very drunk and crying Rafu sitting at the foot of Nozomi's grave. His tears cascaded down his face and onto the green grass that covered the spot Nozomi's body rested. Rafu swallowed down another glass of what looked to be whiskey before dropping the glass beside the flask.

Rafu instantly saw Sakumo and wiped his face before beckoning Sakumo over there. "You might as well come on over Sakumo. I've hit rock bottom and really don't care right now."

Sakumo walked over. "I think you've drank enough today, Rafu. You're liver is going to rebel."

Rafu mumbled into his uniform sleeve. "Well, I'd rather it be my liver than my conscience."

Sakumo raised an eyebrow at the drunken man before kneeling down and looking at Nozomi's grave. He turned to Rafu. "She loved you like a brother, you know that right?"

Rafu nodded before sniffling and burying his face into his hands. He slowly turned to face Sakumo. "I have something to tell you and you're not going to like it."

* * *

Minato walked into the house just a few minutes before Naru. He was sitting at the kitchen table with a plate of leftovers when she walked in and sat down. Naru grabbed a glass of milk before sitting across from him and taking a deep breath. "I'm ready to talk if you are."

Minato smiled and his eyes watered before he nodded. "I've been ready."

Naru smiled before taking a deep breath and telling about her feelings. Minato listened and patiently waited to plead his own case.


	27. Chapter 24

**Chapter 24**

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

It's funny how a person can spend their sleepless nights thinking of the things they're going to say to the person that hurt them the most and then actually get the opportunity to say those things and freeze completely. I have been suffering from insomnia for the past two weeks. The entire household knew it, but no one knew exactly what to do about it. Sensei tried every type of relaxing tea in the book and Kakashi tried wearing me down during our training to the point of exhaustion, but sleep kept evading me. Up until the point we met in the kitchen, I had avoided Dad completely. I knew from Sensei that he was worried about me, but I was too angry and too frustrated to even care. Bottom line, he betrayed me and I wasn't ready to let that go.

I do have to thank Inoichi though, for all of his bad card playing skills he actually gave good advice. He was the one that sat me down and told me I didn't need to talk to Dad; I needed to listen to him. Of course, right after our argument there was no way in Hell I was going to actually listen to Minato, but once the dust settled and I saw how much I truly missed him in my life I decided that I was ready. I was ready to hear his side of the story and ready to see everything from his point of view.

Dad sat across from me with a nervous smile on his face and his hands clasped tightly in front of his body. His eyes still held the same wetness from a few minutes earlier and something in his body language told me he was trying his hardest to not pull me into a hug. The entire room was bathed in tension, but instead of it being a strained silence, it was fairly calming. I swirled the white liquid in my glass before bringing my eyes up to connect with his. It was funny how similar our eyes were, the same color of intense blue with the same oval shape. I couldn't deny him as my father even if I wanted to.

"I shouldn't have yelled at you."

Dad nodded once. "Yeah, but I shouldn't have done a lot of things."

I smiled sadly at him. "I was wrong for saying you didn't love me and for the other things I said too. I'm ready to listen if you're ready to talk."

The corners of his mouth twitched a little before he took a deep breath and began speaking. "My parents, your grandparents, were killed because of my connection to them. I loved my mom and dad like any son does and it hurt when I lost them, especially considering I was the reason they died. For all of my strength and power, I couldn't save the ones I loved the most." He pulled an old tattered picture out of his vest.

I blinked before taking it out of his hands and looking it over. A small blond haired boy played happily in the grass in front of a small house with wind chimes hanging from the windowsills and in the trees. They were all sorts of shapes and colors; no two were the same. I could almost hear the gentle music floating from them as the wind blew them together. The boy, who I assumed was my father, was happily tugging on the skirt of a blonde haired woman.

The woman in the picture was fairly plain, but the way she was laughing in the photo brought out this beauty in her that very few women could achieve. Her blonde hair fell in small curls around her face, but was wild and untamed. Her skin was turned a rich brown from the sun and her small frame was hugged tightly by the flowing skirt and blouse. With her bare feet and bright eyes, she looked very much a free spirit.

My eyes shifted from the woman to the brown haired man smiling happily behind her. His own sun kissed arms wrapped tightly around the waist of the woman. His smiling face just a few inches away from her ear, almost as if he was whispering something to her.

Dad tapped the picture. "That's one of my favorite pictures of my family. It was taken when I was about five years old. Before my dad's accident, before my shinobi training started, before life got complicated."

He reached into his vest once more and pulled out another picture, this one a little younger than the first. The edges were bent, but they weren't tattered as the edges of the first picture had been. A teenage Minato stood rolling his eyes at a red haired girl sitting on the edge of a rock. Her pointed glare and clenched fists spoke volumes, as did the flower in Minato's hand. I couldn't stop smiling when I realized the flower was crumpled and looked like it had been stepped on.

"This is the very first picture Kushina and I took. Jiraiya-sensei kindly suggested I bring Kushina flowers and ask her on a date. I should have never listened to him because Kushina went off on this rant about not every woman likes flowers and I shouldn't be such a stuck up male chauvinist to believe so." He looked at me before cheekily smiling, "Later she did take the flower."

I looked at both pictures in my hands before placing them on the table and looking back up at him. He smiled. "Naru, I'm not making excuses because the things I said and did are inexcusable, but you have to see this from my perspective. I'm young, Naru, and when you showed up and I saw the evidence that you were my daughter I was excited and ready to accept what I thought was a father's responsibility. I don't remember much about my own father. He was there, but he was always on missions and worrying over my mother. He loved me, but I sometimes felt like an afterthought. Then Jiraiya-sensei was never an ideal father-figure. The only example of fatherhood I've seen is Sakumo and even then I've only seen the tip of the iceberg. What I'm trying to say is that I don't know how to be a father to you."

He looked quickly out the window before locking eyes with me again. "I love you. I know how to comfort you and I know how to be there for you, but I can sometimes be a little blind. I should have told Kushina about you sooner, but in my mind I had a very good reason. After I lost my parents I found Kushina, well, she found me, but that doesn't matter. She was the only good thing in my life until you showed up and I didn't know what I would do if I lost her. At one time I convinced myself that telling her would be best and I planned out numerous ways to tell her, but they never worked out the way I wanted them to. In the end, it was my laziness and fear that kept us from being truly happy. I assumed Kushina wasn't going to be accepting of you and I didn't stop to think how that would affect her and you."

He sighed before picking the pictures up and putting them in his pocket. "I want to start over. I want to try this again and I want to get this right. I want to forget this ever happened and I want to be forgiven. So will you forgive me?"

I couldn't help but give him a small smile before nodding. "It hurt to hear you say the things you said last week, but I know I said a lot of things that weren't true. You don't know how to be a father and I don't know how to have a father. I had this perfect picture of the way I imagined you inside my head for so long and it hurt when everything didn't turn out exactly like it was supposed to. I haven't had a family for a long time and once I finally got one again, it hurt to realize we have problems. I want to start over again too. I want to learn how to be a family with you."

Dad smiled brightly before standing up and pulling me into a hug. He buried his face into my hair before whispering, "I am Namikaze Minato, born on the 25th of January to a hippie mother and military father, Jounin of Konoha, and father to one very understanding little girl."

I smiled before hugging him back just as hard. "I am Uzu Naru, born on the 10th of October to a sickly mother and shinobi father, Chunin of Konoha, and daughter to a man willing to change."

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

"Damn."

I sighed before cradling my sore hand to my chest. This whole sealing exercise wasn't working. Who knew Fuinjutsu would be so difficult. I flexed my hand before wincing at the bright red glow my skin had taken from the chakra burns. My right hand was completely useless for now, so I guess it's a good thing I'm ambidextrous.

I rechecked the seal count to make sure they were balanced evenly. The only way this would work is if an even-numbered seal was placed on top of an odd-numbered one or vise-versa. Sensei had given me a complete test on the basic seals and wouldn't let me continue to the actual sealing until I scored perfect on his test. It took me two days, but I learned the seals well enough to pass his test. I believe I could recite them in my sleep if prompted.

I stretched my left hand before gathering chakra into it, molding the chakra to the exact amount I needed before slamming my hand down hard on the scroll and kunai handle.

"Fuinjutsu: Sealing Technique!"

I watched as the numbers danced together before wrapping around the handle of the kunai and pulling it into the scroll. I grinned before picking the scroll up and shaking it, just to make sure the kunai wasn't going to fall out for any reason. I calmed back down from my excitement and gathered my charka once more to unseal the kunai. It reappeared in a puff of smoke.

I caught the falling kunai and twirled it around my fingers before dropping it to the ground. The smile was still on my face as I sat down and tried again. I wanted to make sure I had this technique down before I showed Sensei my progress. We were training together on the training grounds when he was summoned to the Hokage Tower. Judging from the time that elapsed since he left, either it was something important or he had forgotten about me. It didn't bother me; I was more than willing to surprise him later with my grasping of the technique. Plus, he wouldn't have let me continue training with my chakra burned hand. He was just over protective that way.

Slowly I began the process again. Only once more I pushed too much chakra into my hand. It burned worse than fire and throbbed afterwards. I gritted my teeth and tried again. I was determined to get this right.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Shigure moaned softly as a bucket of water was thrown onto him. The small pallet in the corner of his cell was now soaking wet and smelt of sour laundry. A throbbing pain shot throughout Shigure's temple as he opened his eyes to look at the masked leaf shinobi standing in the doorway.

"You've been here an entire week and the big man in charge decided he's ready to see you. Now get ready for transport."

Shigure nodded slowly before trying to stand to his feet. He clutched pitifully at the wall before trying to calm the shaking in his knees. Konoha shinobi were notorious for drugging their captives until they needed them and if his throbbing headache and aching body were any indication, then he had been drugged since he first stepped into their prisoner of war camp. He walked forward and tried to steady his breathing, but everything went dark. He soon found himself lying on his stomach, looking at the cracks in the floor up close and personal. One of the masked guards knelt beside him with a kunai pressed against his throat and two fingers checking his pulse.

"We need a medic!"

Shigure closed his eyes; it hurt to think. A tiny bit of Shigure wondered if this was how Naru felt while in Fort Kei.

* * *

Rafu swirled the amber liquid around in his glass before turning dead eyes on Sakumo. Even after Sakumo told him to stop drinking, he couldn't stop. He couldn't take the hollow feeling in his chest whenever the warmth of the alcohol wasn't there to cover it up. He couldn't take the sleepless nights with his guilt eating away at him.

Everything was his fault. He shouldn't have messed with Sakumo's mission and life. If he wouldn't have worked so hard to ruin Sakumo then maybe he could have been happy. If he would have just concentrated harder and not let his awareness slip, then maybe his team wouldn't have been injured and Naru captured. Naru suffered horrors no one should because of him. Konoha, his village, was in trouble because of his actions and the guilt was killing him.

"I went and saw Nozomi before she died. You weren't home and neither was Kakashi, but she was. She was sitting on the edge of the front porch reading a book and sipping a cup of tea. Her feet dangled off the side and every so often she would sway them with the blowing wind. Her hair was pulled back into a messy bun on the top of her head and a few strands had escaped to fall around her face. She still had those dark bags underneath her eyes and a sickly paleness to her skin, but sitting there she looked so peaceful and at rest. I approached her and instead of being shocked, she smiled and offered me a seat."

Rafu smiled sadly, tears collecting in his eyes once more. "I sat beside her and watched as she continued reading before finishing the chapter and closing the book. I'm sure you remember how much she hated to be interrupted in the middle of a chapter. She turned to me and smiled again before taking my hand and squeezing it. She told me she knew she was dying. She knew she wasn't going to make it to Kakashi's second birthday or to the end of spring. She asked me to help you after she died. She wanted me to help you with Kakashi and when the time came for him to start questioning about his mother, for me to share the stories of our childhood adventures. She asked me to fulfill the role of the brother she never had."

The tears once more slipped down Rafu's face and dripped into the amber liquid on his glass. "I lied to her and told her I would. She looked at me funny before nodding her head and saying eventually I would have to keep my promise. I felt like she could see something I couldn't and that scared me. I was so angry at her for even suggesting I should help you that I took a long mission and didn't return until after her body had been in the ground for three weeks. After I returned to find her long dead, I visited her grave, got plastered, and eventually made my way back to your house. But those ninken of yours were patrolling the grounds and I didn't dare chance an encounter with them. I didn't see you again until a few years later when Kakashi was promoted to Genin. Hell, I avoided you at all costs, even missing a few Jounin meetings just to make sure I wouldn't have to see you."

Sakumo listened to the story before twirling a blade of grass in his hands. "Did you really think that would upset me? Didn't I tell you she loved you like a brother?"

Rafu wiped his face clean of his salty tears before growing deadly serious. "That's not what I originally meant. I'm leading up to it. I've spent years trying to get back at you because I was insanely jealous and hurt. My last visit with Nozomi was all about you. She was only worried for you and Kakashi. I didn't cross her mind at all; she didn't see the pain I felt knowing the only woman I ever loved was dying. I was determined to destroy you, plain and simple. I finally got my chance too."

The entire world seemed to go silent as Rafu gulped down the lump in his throat before speaking. "I switched the mission details for your mission to Fort Kei."

The glass in Rafu's hand shattered when it fell from his hand and landed on the flask of whiskey. Sakumo hadn't moved, hadn't hit him or even made a motion to hit him. The silver haired man was simply staring at Nozomi's headstone. Rafu didn't know whether this was a good sign or a bad one. He had spent all afternoon mentally preparing himself for the blows he was so sure Sakumo was going to give him. Sakumo glanced to the broken glass before picking a piece up and holding it up to the sunlight. The little homemade prism gave off a rainbow of colors before Sakumo placed it back on the ground. Almost thoughtfully, Sakumo questioned Rafu.

"How did you manage that Rafu?"

Rafu frantically began explaining, "It was simple. I have access to the high ranked missions and after I heard you were infiltrating Fort Kei, I simply went in and switched the details with the ones for Fort Rui. They were practically twin forts, so I knew you would never suspect anything. My plan worked and you were disgraced."

Sakumo nodded before turning to look at Rafu. His eyes had taken on a steely grey color and his voice dropped an octave, almost coming out as a menacing growl. "That sounds just about right. My life's work was disgraced and I was thrown from the good graces of Konoha. Not only that, but I was seen as a traitor thanks to the hollow shell of a man sitting beside me. He went around making speeches in crowded marketplaces and turning comrades and civilians against me!"

Sakumo stood and pulled Rafu up by the collar of his shirt. "He made sure the merchants in the market place would either run the prices of the food up or not sell anything to my family at all. He made sure my son knew how much of a coward he thought his father was. He made damn well sure to poison the minds of the other shinobi against not only me, but my children. Did you know four adult Chunin attacked Kakashi? Huh?"

Rafu was crying once more, blubbering really, and frantically trying to apologize.

"Yeah, four adult Chunin attacked Kakashi and beat him real good. Do you want to know what that looked like Rafu? Well, just think of Nozomi's face and picture it black and blue across the jaw because we both know that as much as Kakashi looks like me, he looks like Nozomi more."

Rafu's body was shaking with sobs by now; his voice breaking as he whispered out his apologizes.

"Don't you dare apologize yet, I'm not through. Let's talk about Naru now. She might not be my daughter, but she's close enough to being one. She was attacked as well, twice actually. Once by a darling little girl named Etsu that reminded me so much of you I wondered if you had a child. The second time was on your watch. Remember when Iwa took her?"

Rafu's knees gave out as Sakumo's words hit every nail on the head. Every single thing Rafu felt guilty about was brought out in Sakumo's speech and he truly felt like he wanted to die.

"Please, just kill me Sakumo. Please, if you don't then Konoha will. I'm a traitor of the worst kind. Please, please, kill me Sakumo."

Sakumo let go of Rafu's collar before pacing in front of the man and scratching his chin in thought. "Now why would I want to do that? I can finally get my payback for everything you did to me. I could go shout my own speeches in the streets and turn every single person you care about against you. I can spread rumors through the marketplace just like you did. I can drive you slowly insane until you drink yourself nearly to death. I can have fun terrorizing your family and letting them know exactly how I feel about you and your traitorous acts. I can be just as cruel as you were."

Rafu bowed low to Sakumo. "Please, please just kill me. I'm so sorry. I wish I can take back every single thing I said and did. I'm so sorry. Please forgive me before you turn me in."

Sakumo looked in disgust at the man bowing before him. "Stand up! Jounin don't snivel in the grass like dogs. I want to see your eyes, shinobi."

Rafu stood slowly, but kept his eyes trained on Sakumo feet. Sakumo's heavy breathing filled the area as he paced once more before stopping in front of Rafu and punching the man in the jaw. Rafu's head snapped quickly to the side and his jaw throbbed in time with his heartbeat.

"You should be ashamed and stupid to think I would grant you death. All death would be is a quick end to your miserable life. No, I'm not going to kill you. Want to know why?"

Rafu nodded his head as he cradled his jaw.

"I'm not as cruel as you are. I'm actually even crueler than you could ever wish to be. I'm going to let you live. Hell, I'm not even going to turn you in. I'm going to let you live with the guilt that you are the reason Konoha is falling apart and the reason so many of our comrades are coming back just as dog tags or forehead protectors. I'm going to hound you everywhere you go and watch every step you make, so you better make sure my little gift isn't in vain. I want you to go back to training and get back into Jounin shape. I want you fighting to protect the home you nearly destroyed. I want you to stop crying and start righting your wrong."

Sakumo stepped away from Rafu and began walking away, his hands clenched at his sides. Rafu took a step forward and stepped on the already broken pieces of the glass. "Sakumo wait!"

Sakumo turned, "What?"

Rafu touched his jaw once more before locking eyes with Sakumo. "I'll repay you for this one day. One day, I'm going to make this right."

Sakumo's eyes steeled even more. "Don't do me any favors, Rafu. Just be glad I'm not turning your sorry butt into the Hokage. I would have if we didn't need all the Jounin we can get. Don't make me regret my decision."

Sakumo slowly walked to the Hokage Tower. His breathing had evened out and his hands finally stopped clenching together. His chakra still had an angry tint around it, but he was slowly cooling off enough to civilly talk to the Hokage. Rafu's treachery shouldn't have surprised Sakumo, but it did. In fact, it hurt deeply.

Sakumo took the steps two at a time before finding himself on the third floor of the Tower. The ANBU guards looked at him for only a second before disappearing behind the door. Sakumo only had to wait a few minutes before the door opened and he was called into the room. The Hokage was sitting at his desk with another brown haired shinobi, one that shared the same facial structure as the Hokage. The Hokage smiled warmly at both men.

"Ahh, Sakumo. I'm sure you have something important to tell me or you wouldn't have come here right after a meeting."

Sakumo nodded, "I do Hokage-sama."

The Third nodded before gesturing to the other chair in the room. "Have a seat. My son and I have just finished discussing his plans for tonight. Isn't that right Katsu?"

Sarutobi Katsu, the Third's eldest son, smiled before nodding and standing. "I'm late as it is dad, so I've got to run. I'll see you later."

Katsu nodded to Sakumo before heading out the door. The Third gave a small smile at his son's back before breaking out into a teasing smile. "Make sure you treat Ami-san nice tonight. I won't have rumors going around the village of my son being a horrible boyfriend."

Katsu blushed heavily. "Dad, she's not my girlfriend. This is simply a dinner date between friends. She needs to get out of the house and away from the baby, so I offered. Nothing more."

Sarutobi Hiruzen smiled. "Of course, there's nothing more there."

Katsu threw his father a glare before walking briskly out the door. The Third smiled at Sakumo, "Kakashi's too young right now, but one day you will understand how much enjoyment I get out of seeing him squirm around at the mention of this girl."

Sakumo felt his anger and tension leave his body before laughing. "I'll just have to take your word for it until then."

"Now, what did you have to tell me?"

Sakumo sighed before crossing his arms across his chest. "Hokage-sama, I request that you call off the investigation."

A spark of recognition lit up in Hiruzen's eyes. "Why should I do that, Sakumo?"

"Sir, you're using shinobi that should be focusing on spending their time fighting for Konoha. It's a waste of manpower and effort."

"You have a very good reason, but this person could be a spy. I would be endangering Konoha if I didn't continue with this investigation."

Sakumo took a deep breath. "You won't have to worry about the person anymore. They're not going to cause any more problems for Konoha and have decided to put all of their effort towards fighting for Konoha. They won't pull something like this again."

"You know who it is?"

Sakumo nodded, "Yes, I do."

The Third leveled his gaze with Sakumo's. "Hatake, you do realize not telling me is treason?"

Sakumo nodded, never once taking his eyes away. "I am fully aware of this sir. You know as well as I do that we need shinobi and though one less shinobi isn't going to make a difference, it could. Plus, even though this person did do me wrong, they really didn't hurt Konoha. In a way, they helped Konoha. If it weren't for this person switching the mission details then I would have completed the mission and Iwa could have gotten the upper hand."

Sarutobi sighed before massaging his temple with his fingers. "You're obviously very avid about keeping this a secret. I could force this out of you, but I trust your judgment Sakumo. I trust you. Rafu better make sure he stays on the straight and narrow from now on."

Sakumo tried his hardest not to act surprised, but he was sure he failed miserably. Sarutobi Hiruzen wasn't the Hokage for nothing and his genius was quick to pick up on the culprit after he saw the suspects. Rafu didn't help his case none by changing so dramatically and simply acting guilty. The last time he was before the Hokage he was so twitchy he almost couldn't sit still.

Sakumo stood up and bowed before the Hokage. "Don't worry Hokage-sama. It's not that Rafu isn't loyal to Konoha. He just hates me."

Sakumo disappeared in a swirl of leaves, leaving the Third sitting at his desk and trying to squash down his headache.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

Admittedly it wasn't a smart idea to overdo it with practicing the sealing technique, but I got it. My hands were chakra burnt and ached, but I mastered the technique. I stared down at my raw and hurting hands before attempting to pick up the scroll full of stored away kunai. Though I hurt and would probably pay for it in the morning, I was proud of myself. I bit back a wince before carefully storing away the scroll and walking back to the house.

The sun was hanging low in the sky and was casting long shadows on the ground as I entered the walkway to get to the house. Shiri came bounding over before nuzzling my sore hand. My sharp intake of breath immediately got her maternal senses tingling as she began trying to check out my hand.

"Shiri, I'm fine."

She glared at me. "No 'Kashi. You're hurt."

I held up both of my hands before showing them to her. "It's just a little chakra burn. Nothing big."

Shiri gently nuzzled the back of my hand before turning and sinking her teeth into the side of my shirt and attempting to pull me forward. The sudden movement caused me to almost lose my balance, but Shiri's body kept me from falling. I let her pull me forward before digging my feet into the ground and applying chakra to reinforce my hold.

"Shiri stop!"

Shiri growled before letting my shirt fall from her mouth. "No Kakashi, I know you too well. If Sakumo doesn't see this now, then you won't show him."

I turned to look away from her; she was correct, completely correct. I was content to simply saunter up to my room, soak my hands, and hope they weren't too sore in the morning. I glared at her before sighing and walking towards the house.

"Fine, is Dad home?"

Shiri grinned wolfishly before nodding towards the house. "He's in the kitchen."

I resisted the urge to stomp away from her like a child as I made my way closer to the house. I quickly ran up the stairs and into the house. Dad was sitting at the kitchen table with a picture album spread open in front of him. I slowly took a step forward and watched him from the doorway; he was so engrossed in looking that he didn't notice I was there until the floor creaked underneath me. His eyes shot up quickly before he smiled and waved me forward.

"Something wrong, Ka-chan?"

I walked forward before looking back at Shiri and seeing her mentally nudging me forward. I sighed before holding up my raw palms. "Shiri made me come in here so you could see my hands."

Dad gently grabbed my wrists and inspected my palms. "Chakra burn? What were you doing to burn them like this?" He dropped my wrists and went to get the first-aid kit. He returned to the kitchen and placed the first-aid kit on the table. Dad patted the table twice. "Hop up there so I can see better."

Using his chair, I climbed onto the table and waited for him to sit down. He opened the first-aid kit and took out a jar of salve before opening it and laying the top on the table. I held out my hands and waited for his instructions. He smiled slowly before taking my right hand and firmly running his finger down the middle of my palm. It stung horribly and I couldn't stop from flinching away from him. He smiled apologetically. "Sorry, but I had to make sure you didn't damage any nerve endings."

I nodded and he began lathering my palms in the salve, gently massaging it into my skin. My palms stung from the pressure of his hands running over the burns, but the cooling feel of the salve soothed my irritated skin. After he finished putting the salve on, he unrolled the bandages and began wrapping my hand. "Kakashi, you need to be careful about chakra burn, it hurts a lot and can cause nerve ending damage. If the damage to your nerves is too severe, you could lose feeling in your hands. Now, what were you doing to burn them?"

He started working on my other hand as I started explaining. "Minato-sensei is teaching me Fuinjutsu and I started learning how to seal weapons away in scrolls. I just wanted to have it down so I could show him later."

Dad nodded, "I can understand that, but next time don't overdo it. You don't have to learn it within the first day Kakashi." Dad began putting the first-aid supplies away before playfully winking at me. "Everyone already knows you're a genius."

I rolled my eyes at him and flexed my now bandaged hands before turning to look at the open photo album. Two young girls stood together with their arms around each other's shoulders. I peered at the photo closely before noticing the black haired girl on the right was my mother. I looked up at Dad and saw him staring intently at the pages.

"Dad? What's this?"

"It's your mom's photo album or at least the only one I can find. I don't know where the other ones are, but she used to have a whole lot of them."

I reached over and pulled the photo album into my lap. This was the first time I had ever seen any pictures of my mother as a teenager. Mostly I saw pictures of me and her or the three of us together as a family and even those were hard to come by.

I pointed to the brown haired teenager beside her. "Who's that?"

Dad blinked before taking the album out of my hands and looking at the girl. "You don't remember her?"

I shook my head and raised my eyebrow at him in confusion. "Am I supposed to remember?"

Dad laughed before pulling me into his lap and placing the album in front of us on the table. "That's your honorary aunt. You seriously don't remember your Miki-oba?"

I shook my head once more. "Nope."

Dad sighed, "Well, I guess that is my fault. You haven't seen her since you were about three. She was a really close friend of your mom's. Over half of the pictures in here are of those two together."

I tilted my head before beginning to flip the pages, taking in the various pictures. In some, my mom was laughing with her head thrown back and hair falling around her. In others, she was smiling sweetly, but something in her eyes said she had this mischievous streak in her. I kept flipping until I came across a picture of her and dad sitting happily together at a bakery or at least what I hoped was a bakery. The sugary sweets on display behind them certainly suggested a bakery.

Dad looked so much younger, he couldn't have been any older than seventeen, but he still carried himself with the same confidence he did now. Dad chuckled roughly before leaning over my shoulder. "This was surprisingly our fifth date. She refused to take a picture with me until she was sure she was serious about me. Two months of dating before I was picture worthy. Her grandparents owned a bakery, which is where we were at."

He slowly flipped the next few pages and I could tell that after the initial two months, mom had definitely made up for lost time. As Dad slowly turned the pages, the people grew older and more mature. Dad arrived at the last five pages before stopping and sitting back. "The last five pages are our wedding. She did have an album devoted to when she was pregnant with you and one for your first year, but I can't find them. They weren't where the other ones were and I've searched everywhere I can think of."

The last five pages were filled with pictures of my parents in full kimono. My mother looked very happy as she stood beside dad for the formal pictures and for the informal ones. I scanned the pictures before stopping on the very last picture. Mom was sitting on the thick railing of a red bridge, which must have been hard considering she was still in full kimono, and Dad was standing beside her with one arm around her waist. His arm anchored her in his hold and from the look on his face I could tell he wa;s utterly captivated by her. She wasn't looking at him, but at something off to the right of whoever was taking the picture, while he was staring straight at her. He had loved her deeply.

"That is my favorite picture of all of them. Miki took almost all of these pictures. She had a way with capturing the most endearing moments while no one was looking."

I turned to look at him and noticed the sadness in his eyes. I didn't like it when he looked like that. It reminded me too much of his almost suicide. I turned around and hugged him tightly. He returned the hug before smiling and gently nudging me off of his lap. He stood up and closed the album before sitting it on the counter and turning around. "Come on, let's go see if we can find Minato and Naru. I don't feel like cooking so let's just go out to eat."

I nodded and watched as he headed up the stairs. There was something uneasy about the way Dad was acting, like he found out something he didn't want anyone else to know. The simple fact that he was reminiscing over old photographs was enough to tell me something was bothering him. Eventually we made our way out of the house and in search of Sensei and Naru with Shiri leading the way.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

After Dad and I had our little talk, he asked if I would be willing to help him with something and of course I agreed to help him. We needed a new beginning and a new beginning was what we were going to have.

I already visited with Inoichi for the day and couldn't wait to tell him about the outcome of mine and Dad's talk. I'm sure he is going to be happy for me and maybe now we could move on to the Fort Kei stuff. I'm still repressing a lot of the stuff that happened. Inoichi is more than concerned about my growing insomnia and my fear of eating anything I haven't seen prepared in front of me. He can't do anything though until I'm ready to open up to him and I'm only going to do that when I fully trust him. The strange thing is that I find myself leaning towards fully trusting him more and more.

I was more than a little curious when Dad asked me to help him. I hadn't the slightest idea what he wanted my help with, but from the excited look in his eyes, I could tell it was big. We eventually made our way into town, past the Hokage Tower, and into Konoha Library. The library itself was huge and filled with any book or scroll ever written on jutsu and chakra theory.

Dad nodded politely to the Chunin manning the librarian desk before leading me to the third floor. I had only been on the third floor once before and that was right after my three year training trip with Jiraiya in the other timeline. You either needed special permission or be a Jounin to access the scrolls and books on this floor. I was only allowed because Jiraiya needed a book on seals, but that didn't stop me from looking at the other items on the third floor.

When we got to the third floor landing we were met with a locked door. Dad placed his hand in the center of the door and pulsed his chakra. The locks behind the door creaked and groaned before unlocking and allowing us inside. I stepped into the big room and whistled. It was even more impressive than it was in the other timeline. Books lined the walls and shelves while scrolls were stacked neatly in bins and containers.

"Pretty impressive huh?"

I nodded before taking a step forward and reaching out to run a finger down the spine of a large red book. He laughed and the sound echoed off of the walls before bouncing back to us.

"What are we here for?"

Dad smiled before pointing to a table and motioning for me to sit down. "I have an idea and you were my inspiration."

I raised an eyebrow at him. "Inspiration?"

He nodded. "I was so upset with myself after rescuing you from Fort Kei because I wasn't fast enough to keep you from getting hurt. I felt like I would have made a difference if I had just been faster."

I shook my head, "That's not true. You did everything you could."

He smiled sadly. "Maybe, but I never want to feel that way again. I have been trying different ways to get faster, but none of them are allowing me to get the speed I need. Adding weights will take time I don't have and constantly using chakra to speed up my feet is draining my chakra reserves. I want to create a jutsu that allows me to travel faster than I ever could before. A jutsu that doesn't completely tax my system and will allow me to travel anywhere I want in seconds. Do I sound completely crazy?"

I shook my head because I couldn't find my voice. The man before me, my father, was talking about developing his signature jutsu that would make him famous. He was talking about developing the Hiraishin no Jutsu. A part of me wanted to feel proud that he was using me as inspiration to develop his jutsu, but another part of me wondered how this would affect the timeline. I knew I couldn't help him even if I wanted to as far as the actual jutsu went. Jiraiya hadn't known how to perform the Hiraishin, so he couldn't teach it to me.

"Do you have any idea where you might need to start?"

Dad nodded his head. "I'm thinking this jutsu needs to be similar to the Shunshin, but different at the same time. The Body Flicker is fast, but the puff of smoke associated with it is too obvious. Also, I couldn't use the Body Flicker without using a whole lot of chakra and it would be difficult to use over very long distances. There's also the problem with having to know exactly where you need to end up. I would have to know the lay of the land in order to get there with the Shunshin."

I nodded after listening to his explanation. I knew very little about the Hiraishin. In fact, the only one that would know would be Kakashi. I had a feeling though that this was one of those things Dad had to learn on his own. We couldn't interfere with the victories and failures he was going to meet while trying to develop this technique.

"Okay, well, what do I need to do?"

He pointed to the shelves. "Somewhere in here is the key I need. I don't know where or what it is, but I know it's here. It has to be. I'm going to start on this side and you start on the other. I'll have Kakashi start in the middle whenever I use my power as his Sensei for shameless child labor."

I grinned at him and began searching. I didn't know what exactly I was looking for, but something told me anything would be better than nothing.

By the end of the next two hours we had accumulated five scrolls and two books between the two of us. Each item at least mentioned some extra element to the Body Flicker or some reference to the manipulation of space and time. I leaned more towards the manipulation of space and time than I did to the acceleration of the Body Flicker. Something told me we were 'barking up the wrong tree' with trying to enhance the Body Flicker.

I sighed and began flipping through the book almost lazily. Dad was moving at a much faster pace, almost frantically flipping through his book. He would read a few passages, sigh, and then continue to flip. I had never seen him so restless. I was going to comment on it when the door to the third floor creaked and opened. I turned and waited only to see Sakumo-sensei and Kakashi walk through the door.

Dad looked up and blinked in surprise before hitting himself in the head. "Oh geez, I'm sorry Kakashi. I forgot about you."

Kakashi rolled his eyes. "No problem Sensei. I finished training and got a lot done."

Dad's eyes narrowed at the sight of Kakashi's bandaged hands. "Didn't I tell you to not overdo it?"

Kakashi nodded slowly. "Yeah, but I got the hang of it."

Dad sighed before mumbling something about stubborn Hatakes not knowing when to stop. I smiled at him before flipping the book closed. Sensei came over and ruffled my hair before picking one of the scrolls up off of the table and looking through it.

"What are you trying to do, Minato?"

Dad looked up. "I'm going to get faster."

Sensei nodded before rolling the scroll back up. "Well, while you're getting faster, want to come eat with us? I really don't feel like cooking. Kakashi's not able to with his hands being injured and you two have been gone all day. "

Dad looked at the book before looking at the clock on the wall. It was getting late. He nodded and began gathering the items up to place them back on the shelves. Since these were in the special section of the library we couldn't check them out. We would have to come back. Kakashi walked over to me and began helping me put the scrolls up.

Once we were far enough away from Sensei and Dad, Kakashi began talking. "He's working on the Hiraishin isn't he?"

I nodded. "Yeah, but he's trying to work on enhancing the Shunshin right now. I don't know how long it's going to take him to start looking into time and space manipulation."

Kakashi raised an eyebrow at me. "How did you know the jutsu was more time and space manipulation than anything else?"

"I didn't, but that seemed like it fit more than anything else."

Kakashi handed me a scroll. "The Hiraishin works through time and space manipulation with the help of seals. When he makes the connection between the manipulation and the seals then it won't take him long to figure out the Flying Thunder God Technique."

I nodded and turned to look back in the direction Dad and Sensei were at. I couldn't help but wonder how long it would take him to make that connection.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

"Sakumo, explain to me how you knew where we were at?"

Sakumo rolled his eyes at Minato before handing him another book to place on the shelf. "Minato, I'm a veteran tracker and you weren't making it difficult to find you. Shiri followed your scent here and I followed the rest of the way."

Minato chuckled. "They wouldn't let Shiri inside would they?"

"Nope, I just don't understand their dislike of wolves in public buildings. It's not like she's going to eat them or something."

"Well, I have to admit your wolves are kind of intimidating."

Sakumo looked mockingly appalled. "My wolves? No, not my cute little wolves! They wouldn't hurt a fly, unless said fly threatened the safety of the village."

Minato laughed before shaking his head and putting the last book up. "Where are we going to eat?"

"Well, I think we should go try Haruno Kin's restaurant out, the Falling Leaf. It's a hibachi grill, so the food is cooked at the table. I feel like it's the best idea. Naru would be comfortable and Kin feels like he owes me something for not stopping the rumors right after the mission to Fort Kei. I told the man it wasn't a problem, but he insists on having us there at least once. I can't turn the offer down because that would be rude."

Minato nodded his head. "Why does the name Haruno Kin sound so familiar?"

"He's a member of the Civilian Council and he's a restaurant owner."

Minato shook his head. "No, that's not where I know him from. Ahh, it'll come to me later."

Sakumo sighed before walking towards the library door. "Come on Kakashi and Naru. We're leaving."

* * *

Tohru stretched her exhausted muscles before climbing out of bed and walking from her bedroom into the kitchen. Her double shifts at the hospital were running her ragged. At least the pay was worth it. She couldn't help but smile though. During her last shift she had been summoned to the Hokage's office and appointed as head of the Poison Department. It was an honor, but it was also a lot of work.

She was now in charge of the entire department and everything that went with it. She not only oversaw the developments of new poisons and their antidotes, but also the patient care part of the department. It wasn't required, but she could now stop working the floor and move to a desk. She doubted she would do that, though. She loved working the floor more than research and development and she planned to keep working the floor until she couldn't anymore.

Another positive point in her life was throwing the controlling Ryozo out of her life. Strangely enough, she missed him. He may have been a jerk, but he wasn't always like that. There was a time when he was kind and caring. She had loved him at one point and she still held some of that love for him. Tohru sighed as she looked on the windowsill at a picture of the two of them having a picnic on top of the Hokage Monument. If they could just go back to the way they were in the beginning of their relationship then everything would be fine.

Tohru shook her head before turning the picture around and walking out of the kitchen. Her life was turning around. She was twenty-five-years-old and could do whatever she wanted. Tohru's face broke out into a smile as she began to head upstairs, but something caught her eye and she stopped on the first step.

A note was pinned to the wall with a kunai. She blinked before walking over and dislodging the note from the wall.

 _Tohru,_

 _I'm sorry for the way I acted a week ago. I really didn't mean to be such a bastard, but you know how jealous I can get. I know you probably won't take me back and I don't blame you if you didn't. I was a complete jerk and should be ashamed of myself. If my mom were still alive she would have my head over how I acted towards you. She taught me better. You've done nothing but love me and I've done nothing but act like a jerk. I'm not asking for another chance, but I am asking that we can stay friends. Will you have supper with me tonight? Just as friends, I promise there are no strings attached. If you want, I'll be at the Falling Leaf around six tonight. See you then, hopefully._

 _-Ryozo_

 _P.S. Don't forget to wear something nice, like one of those dresses in the back of your closet._

Tohru crumpled the note up and sighed. She wasn't going to take him back, but if he wanted to try his hand at a friendship with her then she would try too. He really could be a good friend if he tried. Plus, she and Ryozo had been together for nearly two years. It was hard to just forget the closeness they shared before the whole Fort Kei mess.

Quickly looking at the time, she saw she only had an hour to get ready. Now was the time for her to make a decision. Was she going to go to the restaurant or was she going to ignore the note and stand Ryozo up? She sighed before heading upstairs. She would go, but strictly for the sake of their broken friendship.

She managed to get ready and had a good five minutes to spare before she needed to leave. Defiantly, she had chosen a nice blouse and pants instead of the dress Ryozo suggested. She smirked at herself in the mirror as she pulled her long brown hair back into a low ponytail. A few pieces of her bangs escaped the rubber band and fell around her face. She didn't bother with make-up; she was too tired to put it on and didn't want Ryozo to think she was trying to impress him.

She took a step away from the mirror and gave herself a quick once over. She smiled as she noticed her blouse was a light yellow color. Ryozo hated the color with a passion. Her black pants matched with the light yellow blouse, reminding her slightly of a bumblebee, especially when she paired them with her heels. The small points on her light yellow heels reminded her of the stingers on bumblebees.

She looked once more in her mirror and winked at her reflection. "Ryozo better watch out, or he might get stung." Tohru's laughter filled the room as she walked downstairs and out the front door to the Falling Leaf.

* * *

Sakumo and Minato ushered Kakashi and Naru into the Falling Leaf. Naru looked ready to bolt and Kakashi looked like he was going to hurt the hostess if she didn't stop pinching his cheeks. Haruno Kin made his way out from the back and smiled widely before greeting the group. His brown eyes were extremely grateful to see Sakumo there and his light brown hair seemed to bounce as he nodded his head in approval.

"I knew you would eventually take me up on my offer. I would offer you a private booth, but tonight is fairly crowded. So is a floor booth okay?"

Sakumo nodded. "Kin-san, anything you have to offer is fine."

The man smiled before leading them toward an empty booth in the back. They had a perfect view of the entire area, but it was still slightly private. The table had a small grill surface in the middle where the food would be cooked.

"This really seats six, but I usually reserve it for my guests. It's slightly private but not at the same time."

Sakumo smiled before motioning to his companions. "Is it okay that I brought guests?"

Kin nodded before laughing, "Of course it is! Three extra guests are nothing compared to some of the stuff my sister pulled when she was still dating."

Minato smiled before teasing the man. "Now don't tell me you don't take shameless advantage of having this restaurant. I'm sure you've brought more than your fair share of women in here free of charge."

Kin laughed again. "Yeah, but I own the place, so I'm entitled to certain perks. Plus, this restaurant is the reason I'm not married. My ex-girlfriends always get tired of going here or to one of the other ones before realizing I'm actually a tightwad. I don't stay in relationships long because of that."

Sakumo smiled as the man laughed and joked with him and Minato before his attention was captured by a woman walking into the restaurant. He blinked in surprise before recognizing the pretty brown haired woman in the light yellow shirt as Tohru. The hostess chatted idly with Tohru before leading her towards a table along the wall of the restaurant.

Sakumo felt his heart jump in his chest as she laughed before thanking the hostess and giving her drink order. He glanced away quickly, not wanting to be caught staring, before trying to pick back up the conversation with Kin.

"Well anyway, what does everybody want?"

Kin took the orders. "I'll bring the meats and vegetables out so they can start cooking. Be right back."

Naru watched as Kin stirred the charcoal in the middle of the table and added a match for it to catch fire. The heat rolled off the middle of the table slightly as the charcoal caught before dropping back down to a comfortable temperature.

Naru smiled at Sakumo. "Thanks for suggesting somewhere I can eat."

Sakumo waved it off. "I hope you'll one day get over that, but until then I want you to enjoy this meal."

The table broke out into small chatting and laughing as Minato teased Kakashi about the hostess and Kakashi threatened to find Iku-hime. Sakumo didn't understand who or what Iku-hime was, but from Minato's paling skin, he knew it scared Minato to death. Naru giggled at her father's discomfort before asking who Iku-hime was.

Minato groaned before burying his hands in his face. "We never mention that name again. Okay?"

Both Kakashi and Naru erupted into laughter just as the uncooked food was being brought out. Kakashi winked at Naru. "I'll tell you later, _Fishcake_."

Naru's left eye twitched. "Whatever you say, _Scarecrow_."

Sakumo chuckled as he finished putting the food on the grill. "I just realized that the whole point of eating out tonight was for me not to cook and here I am cooking. We should have just stayed at home."

Minato snickered before flipping a piece of chicken over. "Yeah, but at least now you won't have to do the dishes."

"I wasn't going to do the dishes anyway. That's your new job. If I cook, you clean."

Minato rolled his eyes at Sakumo. "Yes dear."

Sakumo glared at Minato before laughing and snagging a piece of grilled onion off of the grill.

* * *

Tohru sighed as she impatiently tapped her foot against the floor and thanked the waiter once more for bringing her a refill. She turned and quickly checked the clock before seeing Ryozo was an hour late. She took a deep breath before giving him thirty minutes before she ordered something and went home. She didn't appreciate it when she was stood up, especially when he was supposed to be her friend.

Ten more minutes passed by and Tohru finally decided she was leaving. She began to flag down the waiter for her check when Ryozo strolled into the restaurant with a very giggly and scantily dressed female. Tohru raised an eyebrow at Ryozo's arm-candy; she looked to be barely eighteen with a very bad dye job. Her brown roots were showing underneath her platinum blonde hair. She was wearing entirely too much make-up and her voice seemed three octaves higher than it was supposed to be.

Tohru couldn't help but mourn for the obvious lack of female pride this little girl had. Ryozo spotted her and a lecherous grin spread across his face as he pulled the girl forward with him. Secretly Tohru rejoiced when his little beauty stumbled in the heels she was wearing.

"Tohru, you came! I was afraid you were going to be too scared and lonely to come."

Tohru put on her best smile. "I came because I thought you wanted to repair our friendship, but obviously I was wrong or you would have showed up on time."

Ryozo shrugged before pulling the chair out for his female friend and motioned for Tohru to get up. Tohru crossed her arms and leaned against the back of her chair. "What do you think you are doing?"

"Sweetheart, I never wanted to have supper with you. I simply needed someone to save a table for me and beautiful here. Any _good friend_ would have done the same."

Tohru was angry, and it was visible in the way her hands shook. She looked at the pitcher of water sitting on the edge of the table and then back at Ryozo. She smiled sweetly before gently grasping the pitcher to pour herself another glass of water.

"Ryozo, I'm glad to see you've started dating younger, but really, I always thought you were the type of guy to date intelligent women. Sweetheart over here doesn't look like she can do simple math, let alone hold an actual conversation."

Ryozo's face turned an ugly purple color and the girl's face scrunched up in disbelief. Tohru didn't know if she was trying to understand all the big words she used or think of a comeback.

Finally the girl spoke. "You're just jealous! Ryozo dumped you because you were a clingy and crippled woman. You couldn't take care of his needs."

Tohru smiled before sipping her water. "Do you really believe everything he tells you? I dumped him and really have no romantic interest in him at all. I simply came here as a friend and got treated like a dog. I'm leaving, but not because I was ordered to. I'm leaving because I want to. I can't stand to see a woman degrade herself like I'm sure you've done tonight."

Tohru stood up, feeling slightly guilty at being mean to the girl, before beginning to walk away. She was lying her teeth off, but she would never let Ryozo know she still had feelings for him. Ryozo grabbed her wrist and twisted it painfully while she was thinking. All of her shinobi reflexes kicked in and she quickly grabbed the pitcher of water, slamming him across the side of the head with it. Ryozo crumpled to the floor and his date let out a shriek.

* * *

Sakumo watched the confrontation between Tohru and Ryozo like a hawk. He wouldn't put it pass Ryozo to harm the woman with the spunky attitude. It wasn't until Tohru smashed a ceramic pitcher of water across his head that Sakumo realized she could take care of herself. Kakashi and Naru's attention was drawn to the confrontation too and he could tell from Kakashi's frown underneath his mask, his son wasn't happy. Naru had yet to meet Tohru, but Kakashi had mentioned her a few times and she knew her friend thought highly of the woman.

Kakashi tugged on Sakumo's shirt. "Dad, go help her."

Sakumo raised an eyebrow at his son. "I think she's got everything handled."

Kakashi shook his head. "She just assaulted a shinobi. She can go to jail if the situation isn't explained."

Sakumo nodded before getting up and walking over to where Tohru stood staring in disbelief at Ryozo's crumpled form. Gently he touched her shoulder and pulled her with him. Kin came back on to the floor of the restaurant before shaking his head at the unconscious shinobi and the frantic girl trying to wake him up.

"Someone get him out of my restaurant."

The girl immediately began yelling for Tohru to be arrested. Kin rolled his eyes. "This one deserved it miss. He's a known womanizer. I'm just glad Tohru-san finally figured out she deserves better."

Ryozo's body was taken out of the restaurant with the hysterical girl behind him. Kin walked over to Tohru and smiled at her. She blushed, "I'm so sorry about the pitcher, Kin-san. I'll repay you for it."

"Nonsense, it made my night seeing him laid out like that. Want to come back next week and do it again? I'll even leave a bowl on the table this time."

Tohru laughed before shaking her head. "Thanks for not holding this against me, Kin-san. Now I think I need to go home and just sleep this off."

Minato called from the table a few feet away. "No Tohru! Come eat with us! We have plenty of food left and you didn't eat anything."

Tohru went to protest, but Sakumo smiled at her. "He won't leave you alone until you agree. Plus I, well we, would enjoy your company."

Tohru blushed slightly before nodding her head. "Sure. Why not?"

* * *

The small group of five at the back of the Falling Leaf had fun and laughed until nearly closing time. Kin finally came out and politely informed them they had to leave so the cleaning crew could clean the place up for tomorrow. Sakumo thanked Kin once more before offering to pay for their meal.

"You were my guest Sakumo and guests don't pay."

Kin followed them to the door and bid them goodbye. Minato looked up into the sky and smiled at the twinkling stars. He turned to Tohru who was still quietly talking with Sakumo.

"Hey Tohru? Where do you live?"

She blinked before pointing in the opposite direction. "I live back that way. I should be going now, but thanks for letting me eat with you guys."

Tohru began walking towards her house and Sakumo watched her before turning to Minato. "Minato, take the kids home. I'm going to walk Tohru home."

Minato smirked and Naru giggled slightly. Kakashi rolled his eyes before pushing Minato forward, "Come on, Sensei. He doesn't need us to watch him make kissy faces at her."

Sakumo mentally reminded himself to get back at his son later for that. He wasn't going to go make kissy faces at her, as his son put it. He simply wanted to make sure she got home alright. He quickly jogged to catch up with her.

"Hey Tohru?"

She turned and smiled slowly, "Yeah?"

Sakumo gently kicked a rock with the toe of his sandal before looking up into her eyes. "Would you let me walk you home? I know you can take care of yourself, but I would feel better if you let me."

Tohru blushed slightly, thankful for the darkness, before agreeing. "That would be nice Sakumo. Thank you."

Sakumo walked forward and offered his arm. She took it and unconsciously leaned into his warmth before recognizing what she was doing and mentally berated herself. She wasn't ready for another relationship, especially not this soon after Ryozo. Sakumo quickly tried to think of something to say to make the walk more enjoyable, but the more she pressed against him, the harder he found it to think of things to say.

He finally managed to get something out. "It's a nice night out tonight."

"Hmm that it is. My brother and I loved nights like these. We would sneak out onto the roof of our parent's house and try counting the stars. We never really got far, but it was fun."

Sakumo smiled. "The meteor showers always showed up better on nights like these than any other nights. My dad used to take me and my older brother out on the roof to watch them."

Tohru nodded. "You had a brother?"

"Yeah, but he died when I was little. Some childhood illness or something like that. What happened to your brother?"

She sighed. "I don't know. He left Konoha a few years back and I haven't seen him since. Last I heard he was in Suna living the creative life, but with the war going on I have no way of knowing he's alive."

Tohru began to slow down as they appeared in front of an old house in a nice neighborhood. "Nice house."

Tohru laughed before climbing the two stairs that led to the door. "It was my parents, kind of lame that I still live in my parents' house, but it's cheaper than paying rent." She turned to unlock the door before turning back around. "I really do want to thank you for everything."

Sakumo tried to stop the blush from rising in his cheeks. "It was nothing. I didn't do anything but invite you to eat with us. You were the one that knocked Ryozo out."

"I still can't believe I did that." Tohru laughed before gasping and pointing to the sky. "Look Sakumo! A shooting star."

Sakumo stood on the same step as Tohru and watched as the meteor shot across the sky, a beautiful trail of orange and blue trailing behind it. Sakumo could feel Tohru's presence beside him all the more as she turned to face him.

"You know they say if you make a wish after seeing a shooting star it's supposed to come true."

Sakumo grinned before turning and facing her. "Oh really? How do I do that?"

Tohru rolled her eyes. "Close your eyes silly and just think of the one thing you want in the entire world." Tohru gently grabbed his hands and stepped forward without realizing she was doing it. She was still caught up in explaining how to make a wish on the shooting star. She closed her own eyes and thought of her own wish. "Do you have your wish? Now all you have to do is keep that wish a secret and it's supposed to come true."

Tohru's own eyes were still closed as Sakumo answered 'yes'. "Now all you have to do is open your eyes and hope your wish comes true."

Sakumo opened his eyes and chuckled at her. "That hardly seems fair. I have to wait?"

Tohru laughed before opening her eyes. "All good things in life take time."

Sakumo grinned before noticing she was still holding onto his hands and was still pressed against him. He felt like he should say something, "Tohru I.."

Sakumo stopped speaking as Tohru looked up at him with glistening eyes. "I know I said it before, but I really do want to thank you for tonight. You are such a kind person and Ryozo's such a jerk. If you hadn't convinced me to eat with you guys tonight, I would have spent my evening moping. I just want you to know that I'm happy you were in the Falling Leaf tonight."

Tohru blushed before standing on the tips of her toes and gently brushing a kiss across his cheek. All thought processes stopped for Sakumo, he was hyperaware of the feel of her soft lips against his cheek. The shinobi portion of his brain wondered how she would react if he turned his head and kissed her on the lips. It had been so long since the last time he fully kissed a woman, since he dated.

Just as Tohru was pulling away, Sakumo made up his mind. He turned his head and cupped her chin to hold her in place before softly connecting their lips. He didn't know whether Tohru would slap him or appreciate his actions, but he didn't become a legend by playing it safe.

Tohru tilted her head slightly as Sakumo slowly and softly kissed her before pulling her closer against his chest. Her knees felt weak and heat raced up her spine at the innocent and imploring kiss. She wanted it, but she didn't want him to be her rebound. She knew she felt something for the silver haired male, but she didn't know what that was. Her body protested, but she finally called Sakumo off.

"Wa-wait Sakumo. Wait."

Sakumo immediately pulled away. "Did I overstep my bounds?"

Tohru shook her head, tears unwillingly gathering in her eyes. "No! No, I wanted that. I needed that, but I don't want you to be a rebound. I don't want to be a one night stand and I'm not ready for another relationship. I do feel something for you, but I don't know if that is just friendship or something more. Please understand."

Sakumo nodded. "Of course, I understand. We were moving a little too fast anyway. Do you want to try and get some lunch sometime next week?"

Tohru shook her head, "I need more time Sakumo. I need to fully get over Ryozo. I may have acted tough in the Falling Leaf, but I still do have feelings for him. It wouldn't be fair to you if I dated you now. I'm not asking you to wait for me, but maybe after I've figured out how to forget Ryozo, me and you can give it a try."

Sakumo smiled sadly before nodding, "I understand. I guess I'll see you around then."

Tohru nodded before watching him walk away. Her heart aching with every step he took away from her. She smiled at her silliness and wished her heart knew what it wanted.

Sakumo stopped before he left her street. He turned around and watched her as she turned away from the window. His lips still feeling the soft feel of hers against them.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

Well everyone, except me, finally returned to active duty. I'm glad because if Kakashi had to stay inside this village one more day I think he would have gone crazy on us. He still doesn't like not having missions when he's not injured. Boys, they're so funny sometimes.

They all left on three-day missions this morning. Dad and Kakashi went to somewhere in Wave country and Sensei had an S-ranked mission in Suna, though I'm not supposed to know that. I pretty much just lazed around the house until it was time to meet with Inoichi. Well, Shiri kept me company. Sensei didn't want to leave me at the house by myself, so he figured keeping Shiri here wouldn't be too great of a loss from his ninken pack. Kane hasn't been too happy with Sensei though. He misses his mate and hasn't been around her in almost two weeks.

Shiri hasn't gone back to the summoning realm since the day we gave the ninken baths. Sensei wanted to make sure her leg healed and since then he really just hasn't wanted her to go back. No one else in the house is complaining either.

The only problem with having Shiri with me all the time is that she now knows exactly how much my insomnia is affecting me. I've been able to hide it from pretty much everyone, but it's getting harder and harder to hide. I've taken to forgetting things. I had to go shopping before the boys left on their respective missions and it took me three trips before I got everything I needed. I can't explain it, but I just simply forgot to put some items on the list. Then when I was at the store, I forgot to get a few items on my list. It doesn't seem like much, but what really scared me was when I walked into the living room last night and forgot what I came in there for.

I'm beginning to think this insomnia thing isn't something I can hide for very long. I also find myself getting frustrated very easily now, even more so than before. I believe I yelled at Kakashi yesterday for spilling a cup of milk that I left sitting on the counter. Why did I yell? I haven't the slightest idea.

I looked at the time before noticing I was almost late to meet with Inoichi. He said he had someone special for me to meet today. Since the day of mine and Dad's big breakthrough talk I had started opening up to Inoichi about Fort Kei. I told him every little detail I could remember in one sitting. I was in there for over five hours, but I knew if I stopped that I wouldn't be able to come back to my story.

It felt good to have everything out in the open and for someone else to know what happened to me during my stay. I do give Inoichi credit, he didn't even flinch when I told him about having to watch that woman raped in front of me. Since my story, Inoichi actually started the counseling portion of his job. His first act of business was to inform me that it wasn't my fault I was captured. He made sure to reiterate that fact multiple times before moving on to different coping skills.

I didn't know what today's session would bring, but I was surprisingly excited about it. I entered the room just a few minutes late and quickly apologized to Inoichi.

"It's not a problem Naru. And besides, my friend isn't here yet."

We waited a few more minutes before a knock sounded on the door and opened with a bang. A very large man with red hair walked forward before greeting Inoichi in a loud voice. Inoichi turned to me, "This is a good friend of mine, Akimichi Chōza. Chōza, this is Uzu Naru."

The large man smiled before nodding to me. "Hello Naru. I hear you are having a problem with food."

I blinked in surprise. "Yeah, but it's not that bad or at least nothing to be worried about."

Chōza shook his head, "Whenever a growing girl like you can't enjoy the goodness of food then there is something to be worried about. I'm going to help you get over your fear of contaminated food. It's a very reasonable fear and one many shinobi have, but there are ways for you to eat without having to stress over the purity of it. Now please follow me."

I followed behind Chōza and smiled as I was struck with small memories of Chōji before shaking them off and entering another room in the Hokage Tower. Inoichi was right behind me and shut the door behind him. I watched as Chōza walked over to the sheet covered table in the middle of the room and lifted the sheet to reveal several plates filled with different mouthwatering foods.

He turned to another smaller table and removed the sheet there to show numerous vials and containers of different shapes and sizes, all sporting the same ominous skull and crossbones.

"Now, on this table are dishes that have been poisoned and dishes that haven't. I'm going to teach you how to recognize a poisoned dish from a regular one. Each poison has a distinctive smell that is almost impossible to cover up, unless said poison was designed to be an odorless poison."

He held up a container filled with a white powdery substance, it almost looked like sugar. "This is potassium cyanide. Highly toxic and a guaranteed death if not treated quickly. This stuff messes with your cellular respiration and will kill you by hitting the heart hard. The one distinctive thing I can say about this is that it smells like bitter almonds. Now go see if you can find the traces of this in the food."

I nodded and walked over to the table. I knew what bitter almonds smelled like from a genin mission in the other timeline, but the other scents of the food was making it hard to concentrate. I finally cleared my mind and stooped low to the table before catching a whiff of bitter almond coming from a chocolate dish. I picked it up and brought it to him. He smiled widely, "Good girl."

He turned back to the table and picked up another container. "Now not all poisons are in liquid or powder form. Some can even come in plant form." He opened the container to show a few mushrooms sitting innocently in their box. "These are _Lepiotas,_ highly toxic as well. Some give off a rubbery-smell and the most toxic ones give off a sweet smell. These could be even harder to find because they look like regular mushrooms you would put in a salad, but they're deadly. Go find them in the food."

We continued like that for a while. Chōza would show me a poison and describe its effects on the body and then explain how to recognize it by sight or smell. At the end of my session with Inoichi, Chōza even had me run through a little test to see how much I remembered. I did fairly well, but still messed up on the mushrooms.

Chōza beamed. "Well Naru, I think you did an excellent job today. We'll work on it again later and maybe you'll go back to trusting your food."

I thanked him before watching him leave the room. Inoichi excused himself and left me standing in the room with the poisons. I looked over them before jumping back as a door opened. It was Tohru, the lady from the Falling Leaf Sensei walked home. I had wondered what happened with her, just like Kakashi and Dad did, but Sensei was very tightlipped about it and went to bed as soon as he returned. She looked a little sad as she smiled at me.

"Hello Naru. It's good to see you again. How has everything been going?"

I smiled back at her. "Everything is going great. Thanks for asking."

Tohru nodded, but seemed like she wanted to say more before moving to gather the poisons. She stopped and turned to me. "Naru, how is Sakumo?"

I raised an eyebrow at her. "He's fine. He's on a mission right now, but he should be back in a few days."

Tohru nodded before sighing. "Well, okay. I have to get these back to the hospital now. So I'll see you later."

I sighed before watching her leave the room with the poisons in hand. Just what happened between those two?

Before I made it out of the Hokage Tower, the Hokage summoned me to his office. I walked in and bowed to him. "You called Hokage-sama?"

He nodded, "Yes, I have a little job for you to do. I need an assistant for a couple of weeks and I wanted to see if you wanted the job. You'll just have to run errands and sometimes sit with me while I hand out missions."

I furiously nodded my head. "Of course I'll do it."

The Third smiled and stood from behind his desk to stand in front of me. "Great. I remembered Kakashi mentioning how much you wanted to become Hokage one day and I figured you'd like to see what the job involves. It's a C-ranked mission and you would be able to be in the Hokage Tower for your sessions with Inoichi."

I couldn't stop myself; I flung myself forward and wrapped the old man in a hug. I also heard myself furiously thanking him and calling him something I hadn't called him since he died in the other timeline, Hokage-Jiiji. I froze before letting him go and blushing deeply. "I'm sorry Hokage-sama; I don't know where my head went."

I only stopped talking when I felt his arms wrap around me. "Kakashi once told me that we were very close in your original timeline. I don't mind you calling me Hokage-Jiiji."

I smiled and tried to discreetly wipe away my tears before hugging him harder. "Thanks Jiiji."

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Shigure opened his eyes and rejoiced when his head wasn't pounding and his body didn't feel fuzzy. He then realized he was strapped in a metal chair in a dark room, and his joy died just a little bit. A door opened and in walked a man with brown hair pulled into a high ponytail.

"Shigure of Iwa. What a pleasure it is to have you in my den."

Shigure squinted in the darkness before closing his eyes as the lights overhead popped on. He finally opened his eyes to see the head of Konoha's T&I taskforce. He swallowed before speaking in a raspy voice.

"Shima of Konoha. What an honor it is to be graced by your presence. I must be a special guest."

Shima smirked. "Oh special indeed. In fact, you're so special that I'm not going to have to torture or interrogate you in order to get what I want, am I?"

Shigure nodded his head. "Why do you think that?"

Shima laughed. "Because according to a very good source of mine, when Fort Kei went up, Shigure was supposedly among the dead buried beneath the rubble. Iwa is currently mourning the loss of their most prized interrogator at this very moment. But yet, here I see Shigure alive and well. Iwa would have been quicker to get to from Fort Kei and you were in no condition to try and attack Konoha. What was your purpose?"

"Uzu Naru was my purpose. I wasn't going back to a village that would condone raping a six year old girl even if she is the enemy. I wasn't willing to go back to a village that wanted me to break such a beautiful and free spirit as the one she possessed. I'm not willing to let the lesson Uzu Naru taught me go to waste."

"Why now though? Fort Kei has been destroyed for almost three weeks. Why wait until now to come find Naru?"

Shigure coughed to clear his throat. Shima offered him a cup of water and held it for him to sip. When he was finished Shima took the plastic cup away and waited for Shigure to continue.

"I forgot about something important. We, or at least Tero, put her underneath a genjutsu designed to slowly drive the victim crazy. If the genjutsu is not disrupted with a certain set of seals then the victim will start suffering from horrible nightmares. The nightmares lead to insomnia and the insomnia leads to death. It's been too long already and I know she's feeling the pain of this genjutsu by now. I just want her to be okay."

Shima was silent as he weighed his options. He had to make sure Naru was okay, but that would mean getting the Hokage involved. Even then, Shigure may be the only one that knows the disruption sequence and if the man isn't truly as changed as he wants everyone to believe then that could end badly. He turned to Shigure. "If you're lying to me about the genjutsu then I promise I'll make your waking and sleeping dreams a living Hell."

Shigure nodded and waited to be led back to his cell.

Shima traveled all day and night, but he eventually made it back into Konoha. The prisoner of war camp was just a day's travel from the village gates, but when you're in a hurry it seems like so much longer. Shima gave his identification to the Chunin guarding the front gate before heading to the Hokage Tower. He passed the street where his family lived and had to stop himself from dropping in and checking on Kita and Iruka. He knew it was selfish, but he wanted to make sure they were okay.

He finally decided against it and continued to the Hokage Tower. It was late but the light in the Hokage's office was on. Shima knew he would be in there. He quickly climbed the steps before walking towards the door. The ANBU stationed at the door nodded to him before letting him walk through.

"Have something interesting to tell me, Shima?"

Shima nodded. "Yes sir. It's about Uzu Naru."

The Hokage pointed to the chair in front of his desk. "Please have a seat."

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

Shiri whimpered as I tossed and turned in bed. She eventually crawled beside me to try and comfort me into sleep, but it just wasn't happening. Finally she made me lay on my side while she curled around me. Strangely enough I found myself being comforted by the warm body and beating heart against my back. I smiled before slipping into a shallow slumber.

A sudden knock on the front door instantly woke me up. Shiri growled before heading downstairs and howling at the front door. A man's voice broke through her growls.

"Shut up you stupid mutt!"

I blinked in surprise before heading downstairs. I knew that voice. Shiri was still growling when I looked out the window to see the one and only Jiraiya standing on the front porch. I resisted the urge to roll my eyes at him before telling Shiri to calm down.

"It's okay, Shiri. It's just Jiraiya."

Shiri growled once more. "I know. I don't like him."

I chuckled before letting him in. "What are you doing here, pervert?"

He actually looked a little sheepish before asking if he could talk to me. I sighed before letting him inside and offering to fix some tea.

"No thanks, it's late and I don't want to stay long. I just wanted to come by and apologize about my actions after your rescue."

I sighed before sitting down on the couch opposite him. My head was killing me and I wanted to cry at the complete disappointment I felt at being woken up after almost falling asleep. I calmed my thoughts and tried to ignore the throbbing headache before listening to him.

Jiraiya pulled out a picture and handed it to me. A young white haired girl and a black haired woman were sitting together in the back of a carriage. In all my years knowing Jiraiya, I had never seen this picture before.

"What's this?"

He huffed in annoyance. "It's a picture."

I gave him a look and he laughed before turning somber. "Those two cheats right there are the reason I was so stuck on finding out if you were the real deal. Hair color and eye color don't make you family, kid. That girl right there had the same exact eye color as my mother and shared my hair color, but did that make her the daughter she claimed to be? No it didn't. I was on the wrong end of a 'mother-daughter' scam and I don't want to see Minato hurt like I was."

The throbbing in the back of my head calmed down slightly by the time I began to question him. "Someone scammed you?"

He nodded. "It was right after I first gained the name of Sannin, before I had a lot of money. This girl, Cho, and her mother, Kazue, came to me claiming Cho was my daughter. At first I denied every single bit of it and then the more I looked at Cho, the more I realized how alike we were. It didn't help that I had known Kazue before and well. Let's just say it was a huge possibility Cho was my daughter."

I ignored the perverted grin on his face as he said that before politely coughing and breaking his trance.

"Oh, sorry. Anyway, I started spending time with those two and as much as I hate to admit it, I started to fall in love with the idea of having a family. I would sometimes wonder what it would be like to forget I was a shinobi and just have more kids with Kazue and raise them with Cho. I was such a fool back then."

I couldn't help but lower my eyes at the bitterness in his voice. I couldn't believe anyone would be that cruel to Jiraiya. He may have been a perverted man, but he was sometimes kind, deep down inside. Okay, really deep down.

"They stayed with me long enough to gain my trust before taking off one morning while I slept. Kazue drugged me the night before and Cho went through my bags and found my bank account information plus multiple priceless gems and items I had picked up from my travels. Later I found out that Kazue recognized my name from the rumors going around town and thought I would have a lot of money. She dyed her daughter's hair from blonde to white and made her put a genjutsu up to change her eye color. Then used our past encounter to make me believe I had a daughter."

I looked up and saw the sadness in his eyes. "I'm sorry."

He ignored my apology. "Want to know what's funny? If I would have used my head, I would have realized that Cho was too young to be my daughter. I hadn't seen Kazue in almost eight years and Cho was only six. I treated you the way I did because to me, you're nothing but another Cho and I refuse to let my student go through what I had to go through."

"I'm not Cho. I am Naru and I'm not looking for money. I want a father."

Jiraiya stood up and began walking towards the door. He stopped before taking a long, hard look at me. "I'm not going to stop trying to figure out who you are, Naru. I'm going to search high and low until I find out every single piece of information about you that I can. I came by to apologize to you, but I'm not stopping."

I watched as he stepped outside before turning and looking at me again. "Oh, and Cho said the same thing. 'I want a father.' Oldest trick in the book princess."

 _"Oldest trick in the book princess…hello princess…no princess, this is your punishment for being a bad girl…..We meet again princess. I think it's time I told you my name, it will forever haunt you 'til the day you die, which will be as soon as I get what I want from you. You will know me simply as Tero and I'm going to make your worst nightmares come true…..princess…princess….."_

Tero's voice pounded loudly in my ears and I could almost feel his breath blowing across my ears as he chuckled over how he was going to break me. I couldn't hear Shiri's worried voice or even her scrambling out the door to find help. I was stuck in my mind and reliving Tero's techniques. The only thing I was aware of was the sound of my sobs echoing off the hardwood floor beneath me.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Shima nodded before answering the Hokage's question. "We did have some medical problems with Shigure. His body didn't react well with the newest drug and his pulse decreased to a dangerous level. I suggest more testing on the drug before we use it again. He was out of it for a few days and didn't wake up until last night, which is when he told us about Naru."

The Hokage rubbed his eyes. "So according to him, Naru is still underneath a powerful genjutsu?"

"Yes sir."

Sarutobi looked out the window at the darkened sky glittering with stars. "It wouldn't hurt to check and make sure. No one has detected anything of the kind, but its better safe than sorry. We'll go in the morning, I'm sure Naru is sleeping right now."

The ANBU guards entered the office with a medium sized brown wolf following them. The Hokage recognized the ninken as one of Sakumo's. "Has something happened with Sakumo?"

Shiri shook her head. "It's Naru. Something is wrong with Naru."

The Hokage's eyes widened. "Take us there."

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

Sensei and I had a simple B-ranked retrieval mission in Wave. It didn't take long; just under three days and the entire time we discussed his plans for his new jutsu. I mostly nodded and added a comment here and there. He's very excited about it, but I can't give him any help. I don't even know everything about the jutsu.

I wasn't taught how to perform it and the only thing I knew about it was the special kunai used for it. I also knew a little bit about how it required space and time manipulation and seals, but I couldn't give details even if I wanted to. Sensei was going to have to figure this one out by himself.

The journey back to the village wasn't long, but it was refreshing. Sensei was smiling the entire way as he hopped from tree to tree. It wasn't until we got to the Hokage Tower that our good mood disappeared. As soon as we reached the tower the Hokage called us into his office and told us Naru had collapsed two days prior. Sensei went strangely pale and quiet as the Hokage went on to explain that she was still under a genjutsu from Fort Kei.

We immediately went to the hospital to find Dad sitting in the room still in his dirty mission clothes. He waved at us before getting out of the chair beside Naru's bed and walking over to see us.

Sensei's eyes were trained on Naru as he spoke. "How long have you been here and how is she?"

"I returned early yesterday and haven't left since. The medic-nins say she was in bad shape when they found her. Apparently some genjutsu was slowly driving her crazy. The normal nightmares we would associate with the aftereffects of torture were fifty times worse for her. I knew she wasn't sleeping, but I didn't think it would be as bad as it was. It didn't help that she suffered a panic attack the other night. The lack of sleep combined with her panic attack shut her body down almost completely."

I watched as Sensei went over to Naru's bedside and sat in the chair. I looked up at Dad's tired eyes. "What caused the panic attack?"

"They don't know, but Shiri mentioned Jiraiya stopped by. Something he said could have set her off. Don't tell Minato, I really don't want him to kill Jiraiya."

I nodded and walked over to Naru's bedside. She looked horrible. Her skin was sickly and pasty and her eyelids were a bruised purple color. Sensei gently held her hand and kissed the back of it. I turned away and walked over to the window. I really hated hospitals.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo looked over his cup of coffee at Minato. They were both still dressed in the same clothes they wore on their missions, not willing to leave Naru alone at the hospital. They already felt bad enough about not being there when she collapsed.

"I overheard you tell Kakashi that Jiraiya was there before she collapsed."

"I did, but I didn't want you to go off and kill Jiraiya, so I didn't tell you."

Minato's normally smiling eyes were sharp and hard. "That wasn't your call though. I'm her father and deserve to know what happened."

Sakumo took a drink of his coffee. "Yeah, but I'm your friend. I know exactly what you would have done if you heard Jiraiya might be the reason she collapsed at that moment."

Minato sighed before standing up. "I'm going to see Jiraiya."

"Minato, don't do something you'll regret later."

Minato smirked at Sakumo. "Don't worry, I won't."

Jiraiya sat at the table in his hotel room and shuffled the deck of cards in his hand. A sake bottle rested precariously on the edge of the table and his feet were propped up on a wastebasket. He felt the slightly angry chakra of his student and turned to look at the opened window.

"Minato, you're not even trying to hide your chakra."

Minato stepped from the shadows and frowned at his Sensei. "What did you do to Naru?"

Jiraiya raised an eyebrow. "I talked to her and left afterwards. I didn't touch her and she seemed fine before I Shunshined out of there."

"You didn't stop to see if she was okay?"

Jiraiya shrugged and continued shuffling the cards. "She was fine when I left, Minato."

Minato was quiet before he spoke again. "Jiraiya. I want you to stay away from Naru and me."

The cards fell out of Jiraiya's hand and scattered across the floor. He quickly turned to look at Minato. "You're not serious?"

Minato nodded before turning towards the window to leave. "If you can't accept Naru, then you can't fully accept me. Whenever you are ready come find us, but until then, stay away."

Jiraiya watched Minato disappear out the window as the sake bottle crashed to the floor and shattered.

* * *

The next morning Minato sent Sakumo and Kakashi home. "Go get some sleep and clean up. I want to stay for a little while longer and then I'll go and change."

Sakumo looked like he was going to protest, but knowing he looked horrible and didn't smell too good either, he agreed. Kakashi was still worried about Naru, but fairly happy to leave the hospital.

The Hokage and the medic-nins had performed the disruption jutsu on Naru the night after getting it from Shigure. The stress on her body dropped and her brainwaves began to emit deep REM sleep waves. It was safe to say she was finally cured of her insomnia. They ran a few more tests and everything luckily came back just fine. All they needed to do now was wait for Naru to wake up and she could go home.

Sakumo and Kakashi walked home, never noticing the stares Sakumo was getting from the female population of Konoha. Kakashi could feel his 'fan-girl senses' going off, but he ignored them. Sakumo was blissfully ignorant he even needed 'fan-girl senses'.

* * *

"Shh, there he is!"

"Who?"

A shocked gasp and a girlish giggled filled the area. "The White Fang of Konoha, Hatake Sakumo!"

"Wasn't he marked as a traitor?"

Eyes widened and mouths flew open. "Not anymore! He's been fully accepted back into the good graces of the council and is officially back at the top of Konoha's list of most eligible bachelors."

"But he's got a kid."

"Yeah, but his wife has been dead for years. The kid is also a shinobi, so he's practically an adult and wouldn't bother anyone that showed interest in Sakumo."

Light footsteps slowed behind the girls. "What are you three whispering about?"

The three girls quickly turned around to look at the newcomer before pulling her into their circle and continuing their gossip. The four heads together created an unattractive collage of different hair colors; two unnatural blondes with their bleached hair and the inky, jet-black hair of the final girl. The newcomer was the only female who could boast her hair color, regardless of the rarity of it, as her own natural color.

"Oh Momoko, didn't you hear? Hatake Sakumo is now dating material again!"

A tense and shrill laugh filled the area as the newcomer twirled her pink hair around her finger before turning to the black haired girl that addressed her. "Of course I heard, but I don't see why it matters to you. With your noticeable roots, dried out skin, large thighs and overall unattractiveness, Hatake Sakumo would never consider dating you."

The black haired girl rolled her eyes. "And I'm sure he'd want your abnormally large butt and rancid breath."

The other girls laughed at Momoko's red face before growing silent as the woman stomped her feet, green eyes flashing dangerously. "I will catch Hatake Sakumo as mine! It's not going to be hard. He's a man and just like every man, he has a weakness and I will find it. He will be mine or my name isn't Kazuma Momoko!"

One of the blondes laughed. "Okay Momo, game on. We'll see who snags him first."

Momo's eyes flashed before she threw her long pink hair over her shoulder to walk away from the group. They didn't believe her, but no man ever told Momo 'no.' She would have the White Fang of Konoha as her husband before long. It may take years to do it, but in the end she would be victorious.

"Hatake Momoko. Definitely has a ring to it."


	28. Chapter 25

**Chapter 25**

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Jiraiya sat in the middle of the training grounds watching the stars twinkle above nursing a bottle of whiskey. It was a hard liquor kind of night.

It hurt having his only surviving student refuse to be in the same room with him or even talk to him. It hurt to have the boy he considered a son cut himself off from him. It hurt to have smiling and laughing Minato be so cold and angry with him. Overall, Minato hurt him and it was all Jiraiya's fault.

"I thought I'd find you here."

Jiraiya blinked before turning around and seeing Sakumo. "How ya doing Sakumo?"

Sakumo didn't say anything and instead walked over to sit beside the man. "I'm good, what about you? I heard Minato paid you a visit."

Jiraiya snorted before taking a sip of his flask. "Always right to the point aren't ya? She's your student, so are you going to tell me you don't want to see me either?"

Sakumo shook his head, "No, but you do know they had blood tests done? She is his biological daughter."

"How does that make a difference Sakumo? So a paper says that Minato fathered a child, that doesn't mean she's not going to screw him over."

Sakumo sighed, "Get over it Jiraiya. So what if someone screwed you over? It's not the end of the world and you're better off now than back then."

Jiraiya didn't think before he said it and he regretted it afterwards, but he spoke from his heart. "Oh this is priceless! You're telling _me_ to get over something? This coming from the same man that still hasn't gotten over his wife and she's been dead for over five years." Jiraiya stopped as he realized what he said. "I didn't mean that Sakumo. It was just the alcohol."

Sakumo's back was still stiff, but he waved it off. "Forget it Jiraiya."

Jiraiya sighed heavily before watching the stars twinkle. "That boy of yours has certainly grown since the last time I saw him. Hell, the last time I saw him, he wanted nothing more than for me to play with him. What happened to that little boy?"

Sakumo was silent again before answering. "War happened."

Jiraiya thought over his friend's words before mumbling to the wind. "What a horrible thing war is."

Sakumo eventually left Jiraiya sitting there, thinking about how life turned out.

* * *

"You don't have to do this. We can handle him ourselves."

A deep chuckle reverberated off the stone walls as the gentle rustle of heavy clothing followed beside light almost nonexistent footsteps. Loud clanging and shouts formed as the prisoners recognized the man walking down the darkened corridor. ANBU quietly slinked along the walls making sure to keep a barrier between the prisoners and the Hokage.

"Yes, but I want to take care of this one personally."

Shima sighed, "As you wish Hokage-sama. His cell is near here. Would you like to see him there or in a T&I room?"

Sarutobi Hiruzen smirked from underneath the brim of the Hokage's hat. The sinister smirk sent shivers down Shima's spine. "The T&I room will do."

"Right away, sir."

Shima continued walking toward a cell as the Hokage let himself be led down the corridor and into one of the rooms designated for torture and interrogation. To any outsider it looked like the Hokage was going to do away with a prisoner, but that wasn't the case. An oily haired man was brought into the room and strapped to the metal chair in the middle of the room. The weariness in his body showing as he rested his chin against his chest and let his hands lay limply in their bindings.

"This is Shigure of Iwagakure, the foremost interrogator of our enemy and the interrogator of Uzu Naru."

The Hokage smirked once more. "Shigure of Iwagakure, I assume I need no introduction?"

Shigure raised his head slightly to peer through a curtain of stringy teal hair. He coughed before shaking his head. "Sarutobi Hiruzen, The Professor, Third Hokage of Konohagakure, and apparently my judge."

The Hokage grinned before looking over to Shima. "Seal the doors and put up a silencing jutsu."

Shima nodded and quickly got to work as the Hokage dismissed his ANBU detail, leaving only three people in the darkened room. Shigure immediately began to fear for his life. The Hokage stood before Shigure and crossed his arms. "Uzu Naru collapsed a few days ago and thanks to the information you gave us, we were able to save her life."

There was a noticeable relief in Shigure's eyes as he managed a weak smile. "Is she okay?"

The Hokage nodded. "She's recovering very quickly now without the hindrance of the genjutsu. Is there any other information you have that would help with Naru?"

Shigure shook his head slowly, "Not unless you want information on Iwa."

The Hokage walked forward, "You're willing to give information on Iwa too?"

Shigure nodded, "I can't go back. Not that I'd want to go back, but I have to completely make right what I did. I interrogated Naru and I expect to be interrogated myself."

Shima shook his head in disbelief. "This girl made that much of an impact on your life?"

"Yes."

The Hokage shook his head, "That won't be necessary. Unbind him Shima." Shima walked forward and unlocked the bindings around Shigure's arms and legs. "Shigure, I have a proposition for you. Iwa believes you are dead, though they have not yet recovered your body. Tomorrow I plan to let go one prisoner in order to deliver a package to Iwa. This package is a message to Iwa that Konoha is not ready to back down."

"Okay, but how is this any concern of mine?"

"I plan to send back to them confirmation of your death."

Shigure paled slightly before letting out a shaky breath. "So I'm dying regardless?"

Sarutobi Hiruzen chuckled, "Does it seem that way? No Shigure, you are not going to die, but Iwa will receive confirmation of your death."

Shigure's face twisted in confusion. "I'm not following you."

"I told you earlier that I have a proposition for you. My student Jiraiya is currently in need of a new spy for his information ring and with your insider knowledge, you would make a great addition. The only problem is that Iwa has to be completely sure you are dead before I can comfortably allow you to join Jiraiya's ranks."

Shigure sat in the metal chair thinking over the Third's proposition. "What do I have to do for Iwa to consider me dead?"

The Hokage locked eyes with Shigure. "So you're considering my proposition?"

"Hokage-sama, I've done a lot of bad things in my life and it's time I start doing good again. I'm willing to do anything for my chance at redemption."

The Hokage nodded, "It won't be an easy road or job. You'll have to take on a completely new persona and leave behind Shigure the Interrogator. Are you willing to change completely and never look back? This is the only time I'm giving you a chance to back out. If you decide later that you want to leave then I'll have no choice but to end your life. Once you enter Jiraiya's ring you can't leave."

Shigure looked off to the right and considered his options. Helping Konoha was his best option and his best chance of one day gaining Naru's forgiveness. His life would finally be more than digging into the minds of others and breaking them. He would finally be able to find himself and stop changing to meet other people's needs. He could finally be just Shigure.

"I'll do it. Do you still want that information?"

Shima smiled slightly before turning to the Hokage. "While Shigure was drugged we checked his mind for memories and information regarding Iwa. It wasn't a lot we didn't already know, but it was helpful all the same."

The Hokage nodded, "Well, since that's taken care of we can get you ready to meet with Jiraiya. In order for Iwa to believe you are dead, we're sending them your forehead protector, some of your hair and the tattoo on your right arm."

Shigure blinked in surprise before turning to look at the tattoo engraved into his skin. He had gotten it after he became a Jounin and while he was still training to become an interrogator. The design was simple, a kunai embedded deeply into a jagged boulder. It was his visual interpretation of his determination to be an interrogator. He had wanted to be as deeply embedded into his passion as the kunai was in the boulder, but as life changed, so did the meaning of the tattoo. Now he just considered it the only unchangeable part of him. He had already changed so much from the child he was and refused to ever change again, unless he wanted to.

His tattoo became famous as he rose through the ranks. For a while it was the only thing his superiors used to identify him. That was back when he changed his hair color almost religiously in the hopes of breaking prisoners and gaining their trust. Back when his eyes were an uncomfortable icy blue instead of the soft brown they were now. Way back when his nose was a little bit bigger and his clothes more revealing. Yeah, sending his tattoo back would definitely identify him to Iwa and confirm his death.

Shigure sacrificed a lot in order to become Iwa's top interrogator. His techniques involved changing to fit his prisoners likes. He changed himself in order to gain their trust. He always found it amazing how one person could mistrust a man with red hair and completely trust a man with blonde. He was tired of being a chameleon and simply wanted to be Shigure.

"That's fine, but can I request something Hokage-sama?" Hiruzen nodded and Shigure slowly brushed a strand of his oily hair behind his ear. "If I'm going to change, I want to be able to decide what I change into. I want to finally pick who I am."

"That's acceptable. What do you want Shigure?"

A smile finally made its way across Shigure's face and he laughed, "I want to get rid of this hair. Teal wasn't a very good color for me."

"Done, but the color looks to be to the roots. We may have to shave it if you don't want it dyed again."

Shigure waved it off weakly. "Shaved is okay. I think it's best to let my hair come back naturally anyway. Much healthier that way."

As the Hokage briefed Shigure on his future position in Jiraiya's spy network, Shima set about preparing Shigure's arm for the tattoo removal. The only possible way to remove the tattoo was to completely cut the top layers of skin away and even that was dangerous for Shigure. Shima injected a local anesthetic into Shigure's arm so the pain wouldn't be as severe. It was going to hurt regardless, especially considering the sheer amount of nerve endings located in the skin, but the anesthetic would take the edge off. Shigure was bound to feel it and would be encouraged to scream.

The prisoner they were sending to Iwa needed to truly think Shigure died or his new life would be jeopardized. The more screaming from Shigure, then the more likely they would believe that he was dead and the easier it would be to incorporate Shigure into his new life.

"Shigure, you're going to be free to live your own life. Take a wife and have a family, anything to separate yourself from Shigure of Iwa, but know you will be in danger. We'll protect you the best we can, but your life will be at stake."

Shigure nodded and turned to Shima as he injected the anesthetic into his arm. "Just allow me to one day apologize to Naru and I'll gladly do your bidding."

"That will have to come much later Shigure, but it will come. Now, are you ready for the extraction process?"

Shigure nodded and waited for Shima to continue. The man quickly released the silencing jutsu placed around the room before beginning. A searing pain ran up the side of Shigure's arm as the scalpel began to neatly cut away the top layers of skin. Shigure couldn't hold back his screams and groans as the top layers of his skin were cut away from his body.

The Hokage watched happily. He hated causing another person pain, but everything was going according to plan. Everything about Shigure would soon be finalized and then they could steal him away to Jiraiya. The package would be sent in the early hours of the following morning and Iwa would get it in a few days. Everything was coming together nicely.

Shigure weakly stared at the piece of his skin lying across a bloodied towel. The tattoo was still intact and in near perfect condition, the only mar being a slight tear in the tattoo near the top. Shima was currently compressing another towel on the weeping wound in hopes of stopping the blood enough for him to finish the procedure. He may not have been a medical ninja, but he had worked on the body long enough to know a few tricks.

Quickly forming the seals, his hands glowed green as he placed them over the wound. Before his eyes, the skin began to knit back together and heal. After a few days there wouldn't be a single trace of the tattoo's existence. "Your arm will be sore for a few days and try not to injure it. Everything else should be fine."

Shigure gently ran a finger over the newly healed spot and winced at the searing pain. He rolled his eyes at Shima's 'I told you so' smile. "What's next?"

Shima shrugged, "We can shave your head now."

Shigure nodded and Shima quickly picked up a pair of scissors from the low table along the wall of the room. He began cutting away the long strands until they were close to his head. Then he retrieved a razor and shaving cream to finish the rest of the hair. After everything was done, Shigure found himself looking at a completely different person. Gently, he reached up and with the little bit of chakra he had, he released the seal on his eyes. The soft brown color was replaced with an icy blue and a great weight lifted off of Shigure's chest.

A set of clothes was thrust into his hands by the whispering Hokage, "Quickly change and get ready. You have to leave very quickly if you want to make it to Jiraiya in time."

Shigure turned and quickly shed his dirty and torn clothes before pulling on the darkened clothes and wrapping the cloak around his body. He slowly pulled the hood up over his newly shaved head before turning to the Hokage. Sarutobi handed Shigure a pack filled with a few supplies that would sustain him until he reached Jiraiya. He also handed him three round pills. "These are supplementary pills. Take them now so your energy and chakra will be replenished enough for the journey."

Shigure popped the pills into his mouth and immediately felt energy return to his body. "Anything else, Hokage-sama?"

Shima walked over to stand beside the Hokage as the older man shook his head. "Good luck Shigure. Jiraiya is waiting just outside of Fire Nation borders. Just inform him of your new name and he'll explain everything else."

Shima began to lead Shigure away, but the man stopped and turned towards the Hokage once last time. "Thank you, Hokage-sama." Together Shima and Shigure disappeared into the night.

Shigure found Jiraiya the following morning and was given his assignment by the scowling man. Shigure would spend the rest of his life in a small town fifty miles from Amegakure, right in the middle of Iwa controlled territory. He would gather information on the forces there for Konoha as a merchant by the name of Shi. He would be able to live the rest of his life the way he wanted to.

The same morning Shigure met with Jiraiya the Hokage picked the youngest Iwa prisoner, a boy of thirteen, to return to Iwa. They blindfolded the boy and placed him under a genjutsu so he couldn't retrace his steps back to the camp. The masked ANBU dropped him in the middle of nowhere with a note telling him to walk west and a box containing a letter to Iwa and Shigure's belongings. One dented forehead protector, a pile of teal hair, and the drying sliver of tattooed skin.

* * *

"Well Kit, you finally did it. You've got to be the only person in the entire world that sleeps for four days straight without being in a coma. I think you set a new record."

"Bite me fur ball."

"I would gladly if I could get out from behind these bars, but no, your father trapped me in here with you."

"Aww, is little Kyuubi-chan gonna cry? Does the mighty nine-tailed demon fox need a tissue?"

Kyuubi and Naru glared at each other across the bars of Kyuubi's cage. "Just wake up Kit. That sensei of yours is trying to wake you up before your father leaves."

Naru blinked rapidly, "Why is he leaving?"

"Urgent mission that only he can do, but if you wake up right now you can say goodbye to him. He won't be back until morning."

Naru nodded before smiling, "Thanks Kyuubi. Even if you are a pain in my neck, you can sometimes be nice."

Kyuubi growled lightly, "Just get going Kit."

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

"Hey Naru, wake up so Minato will stop stressing. You know how he gets sometimes." I felt my eyes twinge with a slight pain as I opened them for the first time in days. Sensei smiled brightly before gently tucking a short strand of my hair behind my ear. "Welcome back to the land of the living. Did you enjoy your nap?"

I yawned and stiffly tried sitting up. Sensei stood quickly and helped me get into a sitting position. "Where's Dad and Kakashi?"

Sakumo-sensei pointed to the other bed in the room. "Kakashi's sleeping. He just got back from a mission and your dad is currently in the hall talking with Tsunade. He's trying to convince her to shock you awake."

I smiled at him before turning to look at Kakashi. His clothes were torn and his leg was bandaged, but other than that he looked fine. Dad bolted into the room shortly after I began talking.

"Naru!"

His shout woke Kakashi up instantly and I watched as Sensei walked over and pushed him back down to the bed before pulling the covers up to his chin. I turned my attention back to Dad and let him engulf me into a hug. I blinked in shock when I felt his damp cheek touch my neck. He whispered into my ear softly, "I was so afraid that I lost you again."

He pulled away and I discreetly reached over to brush the dampness away from his eyes. "Don't worry, Daddy. Everything's going to be just fine now. I feel tons better."

Dad nodded happily before hugging me again and looking at the clock on the wall. He shifted from one foot to the other before turning to look at me once more. "I'm so sorry Naru, but I'm already late for my mission. I should get back soon, I promise."

I waved him forward. "Go on before you get in trouble. Good luck."

He waved and vanished in a swirl of leaves. I looked over at Sakumo-sensei and grinned. "You have got to teach me how to do that."

He laughed before playfully glaring at me. "How about we get you out of the hospital first? Then we'll start talking about training. Tsunade already chewed me out because your muscles looked strained. She claims I've been pushing you to train, which is funny because we both know there was no pushing on my part."

I couldn't help but grin shyly at him. "Sorry Sensei?"

Sakumo-sensei laughed quietly before stretching and fluffing my pillow. "Lie back down and sleep Naru. It's really late and if we're lucky, Tsunade should let you go home tomorrow."

I huffed and shook my head. I was wide awake now and didn't want to go back to sleep. Its funny how just a few days ago I wanted to do nothing more than sleep and now I'd rather be awake. "Do I have to? I'm fully awake now and I'll be restless if I lie here and try to fall asleep."

Sensei sighed before rubbing his temple underneath his headband and mumbling to himself. "I get one to sleep and the other wakes up. It's like having twins." He sighed again before looking me over with a calculating eye. "Well, you do look well rested, but one yawn and I'm getting the nurse to put you to sleep."

I nodded my head, "Okay!"

Kakashi turned in his sleep and mumbled something into the sterile hospital pillow that sounded suspiciously like 'stupid hospital' before breathing evenly again. Sakumo-sensei watched him with a small smile on his face before turning back to me. "Well Naru, since you're up, what do you want to do?"

I grinned before attempting to joke with him. "We could always go train."

Clearly Sensei wasn't amused with my joke. His eyes narrowed and he raised an eyebrow, "Not a chance sweetheart."

I chuckled at him before turning to look out the window. I knew exactly what I wanted to do. I had something to tell him. It took being captured by enemy shinobi and suffering from insomnia to discover the answer to Sensei's question from our first training session, but I found the answer. I can't believe how long ago that afternoon seems now. It's only been months, but it seems like an entire lifetime ago. We've accomplished so much, but at the same time, there is so much more to do.

I faced Sensei and gently bit my bottom lip in thought. "Sensei? Do you remember the question you asked me from our first training session? The question about chakra?"

Sensei nodded slowly, as if trying to see where I was going with my questions. "Yeah I remember."

"You asked what chakra meant to me and I answered with some clear-cut textbook answer. You kind of told me off for memorizing the definition and not being able to give you a personal definition. I've never been big on book learning and would rather be up and moving around instead of sitting and thinking over complicated concepts. That's just my active nature at play." I smiled at him and saw I had his undivided attention.

"But when I was at Fort Kei, I had a lot of time to sit around and think. It's the only thing I could do on most days and I thought about that question a lot. I was ashamed I hadn't been able to come up with an answer before then and after thinking over the question for a few days, I came up with my answer. If you're still willing to hear it."

Sensei nodded once before pulling a chair close to my bedside and sitting down. "I'm all ears, Naru."

I gulped before going on. "Chakra is everything the textbook definition tells us. It's our life force and our spiritual energy combined, but it's also something else that I don't think we can name. Chakra is warmth and the knowledge that life runs through your veins. Chakra keeps us strong and allows us to defend our home and family. So in a way, chakra keeps our bonds precious and strengthens them so they won't snap under pressure."

I took a deep breath before continuing. "When I was at Fort Kei, they completely cut my chakra off from me and I experienced a coldness in my body. It was like something was missing, the warmth was gone and I didn't know if any amount of blankets would take the coldness away. I never want to feel that again."

Sensei smiled gently. "I'm very proud and impressed with you Naru. Now, answer one final question on chakra. How can you control it?"

"Chakra is a lot like a wild beast someone tried to domesticate. It's powerful and deadly, but no matter how tame you think it is, there will always be a hint of wildness in its eyes. There is always the possibility that the animal will revert to its instincts and attack. Chakra is raw and powerful. With training it can be controlled, but never fully. Your chakra will always be unpredictable and wild."

I stopped speaking and waited for Sensei to admonish me for contradicting the belief that all chakra can be tamed, but he didn't. Instead he nodded his head. "I agree with everything you said, Naru. Chakra can be controlled, but it's still unpredictable. I'm impressed that you drew that conclusion. You're growing into a very smart girl."

I rolled my eyes at him before sticking my tongue out at him. He simply laughed before advising I get some sleep before morning. I relented and quickly found myself back in dreamland.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo watched as Naru eventually slipped back into an even sleep. He silently chuckled before pulling the covers up over her body and walking over to check on Kakashi. His son was still sleeping soundly as Sakumo gently brushed the long silver bangs from his boy's eyes. Silently, Sakumo mused, his son would have to get a haircut soon.

The door to the room opened slightly and a familiar brown head of hair peered into the room. Sakumo found himself blushing as he remembered the last time he was with Tohru. She blushed a little as well before motioning for him to follow her into the hall. Sakumo immediately left the room after her.

She shyly smiled and hid her eyes behind her bangs as she waited for him to speak. Sakumo couldn't help but notice she looked more like a little girl than a fully grown woman at that point. He decided he should say something before she thought he didn't want to see her.

"It's good to see you Tohru."

Tohru raised her head and brushed her hair away from her eyes. "It's good to see you too. I was afraid this would be awkward."

Sakumo shrugged before leaning against the wall and looking at her. "Me too. You look good by the way; the nurse's outfit is cute."

A bright smile developed on Tohru's face as winked at Sakumo and playfully tugged on his white and red shirtsleeve. "You don't look too bad yourself soldier."

Sakumo laughed quietly before holding out a hand to her. "Want to go grab a midnight snack? Then you can explain why you're running around in a nurse's uniform instead of your regular one."

Tohru accepted Sakumo's hand and squeezed it before shaking her head. "I'm sorry Sakumo, but I've got to take a rain check on your offer. I would love to, but I've got paperwork to do tonight and I'm a little swamped."

Sakumo didn't know why, but he was honestly disappointed when she declined. "That's fine, I'll just catch you later then."

Tohru blinked before feeling a pit in the middle of her stomach. She didn't want him to leave, even though she had so much work to do. In a moment of truth, Tohru mentally agreed with herself that the paperwork could and would wait. Sakumo began to turn, but Tohru squeezed his hand and pulled him back. "You know what? My paperwork can wait. I have ice-cream in my office, if you still want that midnight snack."

"Why do you have ice-cream in your office?"

Tohru shrugged. "It's tied to the story of why I'm wearing this uniform and you won't believe the story."

Sakumo grinned, "Try me."

Together they walked to Tohru's office on the next floor, their hands still clasped together. "It all started this morning with a bat in my office."

"There was a bat in your office?"

"Don't interrupt Sakumo or I'll never finish the story. Yes, a bat with horrible depth perception. It kept running into the fake tree in my office."

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

Tsunade didn't let Naru leave the next day. Of course Naru was completely ticked, but Tsunade's word was law around the hospital. Sensei still wasn't back from his mission and Dad was being sent out as soon as he finished packing. Which meant I was left with the task of keeping Naru company at the hospital. Oh joy.

I'll admit that I was doing better than I normally did, but the hospital was grating on my nerves. Which is exactly why I'm currently taking a walk around the village. Naru had been taken by Tsunade for a shower, which gave me a little time to myself.

The marketplace was one of the first places I stopped because I was not living off of ramen. I needed something fresh and healthy. So I immediately went to the fruit vender. I was paying for an apple when I heard the angry shout of a merchant and sighed before wondering if it was directed at me. Though most of the merchants and civilians had started to realize Dad wasn't a huge traitor there were still a few like the fishmonger, for example, that still gave us a hard time. The fishmonger was the one that was yelling about traitorous bastards and their bastardized children.

I turned, fully prepared to use words my father would kill me over, before I realized the fishmonger was not directing his insults towards me. No, they were being directed to a sobbing little girl who was clinging to the skirts of an older woman. Said woman pushed the child off of her and watched without emotion as the girl crumbled to the ground. The older woman walked away without looking back.

I growled lowly before walking over and helping the little girl up. She couldn't have been more than four and she had the saddest brown eyes I had ever seen. "What do you think you're doing little Hatake?"

I blinked before turning to face an older man, "Nothing Ojisan, except helping her up. Is there something wrong with that?"

"Kid, just go. Your daddy just got back into the good graces of the village and being around my granddaughter will only endanger all the honor he fought to get back."

I was slightly appalled by the fact that he just admitted this little girl was his granddaughter, but he did nothing to help her up. "If she's your granddaughter then why aren't you helping her up?"

The older man chuckled humorlessly before turning to the girl and ordering her to stop crying. "Because she's the daughter of traitors. I raised my daughter to love Konoha and she repays it by whoring herself and her family off to Iwa? I'm glad she's dead. The only thing I regret is that she didn't take her brat with her." The little girl wailed miserably and the man snapped at her, "Fujiwara Hana! I said hush it up."

It hit me as I watched the little crying girl being dragged away from the marketplace. She was the daughter of Fujiwara Airi and Haru, niece of Fujiwara Goro, and apparently shouldering the blame for her parent's decision. Needless to say, I was disgusted with her so-called grandparents. I continued watching the little girl with sad eyes follow after the adults and try to ignore the sneers and insults thrown her way. I shook my head before turning away, was Konoha really that blind? A part of me wondered if it was even worth saving.

"Kakashi!"

I blinked before turning and seeing Gai run happily down the road in a green jumpsuit. Wait, is he wearing that atrocious jumpsuit! I felt like crying. Could my day get any worse?

"What in the name of all that's good and pure are you wearing Gai? I think my eyeballs are going to melt out of my eye sockets."

Gai stopped in front of me and turned around for me to look at his outfit. "You don't like it?"

"It's interesting enough Gai, but it's spandex and a full bodysuit. It's also green with orange legwarmers. What are you going to do next? Get a bowl cut?"

Gai smiled before rolling his eyes. "Don't worry Kakashi, this was just for a mission. We had to clean out the bathhouse and the jumpsuit was the easiest way to do it without getting my clothes wet."

I looked at him skeptically. "And the legwarmers?"

Gai blushed. "I just like them."

I couldn't help but laugh at him before remembering he wanted to speak with Naru. "Hey, do you still want to see Naru? She's a whole lot better and would enjoy the company. She's stuck in the hospital for a while."

Gai nodded enthusiastically. "Of course! Let's go rival! Race ya to the hospital!"

I found myself laughing before taking off after Gai, but Hana never strayed far from my mind. I would have to talk to the Hokage about it later. Naru didn't need the stress right now.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Naru's left eye twitched as she watched the nurse hand her a glass of water and the vitamins Tsunade prescribed for her. If Naru had her way, she wouldn't be taking the vitamins, but Tsunade threatened the nurses if they didn't watch her take them. It was annoying, but it was also sweet of Tsunade to care. So Naru begrudgingly took the vitamins, but as soon as she left the hospital it was over for those vitamin supplements.

The nurse smiled before thanking Naru and walking out the door. A few minutes later the door opened again and two boys walked in. Both were talking and laughing with each other. Naru's eyes instantly trained on Gai's green jumpsuit and orange legwarmers.

"Gai? What are you wearing?"

The black haired boy laughed. "Don't worry Naru. Kakashi's already told me my jumpsuit is a little eccentric. It's only for today."

The mischievous side of Naru thought about telling Gai that Kakashi was lying to him, but her eyes protested. She didn't think she could handle seeing Gai in that outfit every single day. "It wouldn't be bad if it weren't for the fact that it's a full body suit. The colors could work too."

Kakashi glared at her and she winked at him playfully. Gai smiled brightly and held up his thumb. "You're so cool, Naru!"

She grinned. "I try."

Kakashi twitched. "Okay, that's it, I'm going to eat my apple."

Naru and Gai watched as Kakashi walked out of the room before breaking out into laughter. "I'm glad you came by and saw me Gai. Kakashi's nowhere near as interesting as you are."

"Don't say that Naru, we both know you value him as a close friend. I had wanted to come by earlier, but this was the first time I could get away. I sort of heard about what happened and I'm not asking for details, but I want you to know that I'm here for you. I'm your friend too, Naru."

Naru smiled softly. "Thanks Gai, that means a lot to me. I'm happy to have a great friend like you."

Kakashi didn't come back for a while and both Naru and Gai found themselves growing bored of just talking and messing with the nurses. Finally Gai was poking through the closet in the hospital when he let out an excited shout. "Look what I found!"

Naru blinked from the bed. "What? A Dead body?"

"No! Shogi!"

Naru blinked before sighing. "And here I was hoping for the dead body. That would have proved my 'the hospital is really an evil place' theory."

"Do you know how to play?"

Naru shrugged. "No, never really had the time to learn. Can you play?"

Gai nodded. "Not very well, but enough that I can teach you how."

Naru instantly began shaking her head. "No, we don't have to. I'm sure we can find something else to do."

Gai shook his head, undeterred. "Nope, I'm teaching you to play. Get ready."

Naru groaned before clearing the table so the checkered game board could sit there. "Why do I feel like this is going to give me more of a headache?"

* * *

Kakashi quickly finished off his apple before heading to the Hokage's office. The fate of Hana was bothering him greatly because in those sad eyes he saw the same look Naru once had. That loneliness and grief wasn't something a child her age should have. She deserved better, just as Naru did.

The Hokage was in a meeting when Kakashi arrived, but thankfully the meeting let out quickly. Umino Shima walked out and smiled at him before disappearing in a puff of smoke. The Hokage called Kakashi forward.

"Welcome Kakashi-kun. What can I do for you today?"

Kakashi walked forward and bowed. "Hokage-sama, I have something to ask about Fujiwara Hana."

The Hokage's eyes grew sad as he stood from his chair and walked around his desk. He stood in front of Kakashi and placed his hands on top of his shoulders before bending down to the young boy's level. "Kakashi-kun, I realize that a shinobi can get attached to the remaining family members of shinobi they were commissioned to assassinate, but the Fujiwaras were traitors to Konoha. You owe them nothing."

Kakashi shook his head. "That's not why I'm here, Hokage-sama. I know the Fujiwaras were traitors and they got their reward, but Hana didn't ask for the hand she was dealt. She didn't ask to have to pay for her family's sins."

The Hokage straightened his back before tilting his head and looking down at Kakashi. "What are you talking about?"

"Sir, I was in the market today and Hana is being tortured and punished by her guardians because of her parents. Her own grandfather said he wished Airi would have taken Hana with her to die. I'm not trying to meddle where I don't belong, but I saw the same look of loneliness in Naru's eyes at one time and it's a look no child should have."

The Hokage sighed deeply before casting the silencing jutsu. "Talk freely, Kakashi. How old were you when Naru was born?"

"Thirteen."

"You were so young. Naru was given a fate she didn't deserve and I'm glad you were both given a second chance. I'll review Hana's case and see what I can do. If the neglect and abuse is as bad as you claim, then it wouldn't be hard to take her from them. It's finding her a home that would be hard. Thank you for bringing this to my attention Kakashi."

Kakashi nodded slowly. "I just want to try and make this place better. I don't want anyone to see the same future I saw."

* * *

"Gai, do we have to play?"

Gai sighed before beginning to set up the board. "Naru, this will increase your strategy skills. You said earlier you wanted to train and this counts as training."

Naru glared at the back of the boy's head before mumbling underneath her breath. "I didn't want to train my brain."

Gai pretended to not hear Naru as he finished setting up the game. He looked over to make sure each side had the same amount of pieces. Twenty pieces on each side with each player having one king, one rook, one bishop, two gold generals, two silver generals, two knights, two lances, and nine pawns. Gai sighed before trying to figure out how he was going to explain this to Naru. He wasn't insulting her intelligence, but this was a complicated game to understand. He didn't even understand it all the way.

"Okay, you should know the names for the pieces and the object of the game is to capture the king." Gai pointed to the square set along the bottom of Naru's side of the board. "Protect the king above anything else."

Naru nodded. "So that seems simple enough. They move a certain way right?"

Gai nodded before pointing at certain pieces and explaining their mobility. "The king can move one square in any direction. Kind of sad it's got all this power and can only move so far. The rook is a pretty neat piece; it can move any number of squares in any of the four orthogonal directions."

Naru intently tried to memorize the movements before nodding she was ready.

"Let's see, oh! The bishop is like the rook and can move any number of squares in any of the four diagonal directions."

Gai continued explaining the mobility of the pieces until he got to the final piece, a simple pawn. After explaining the overall limited mobility of the pawn, he decided Naru was ready to play a game with him.

"Now let's play!"

Naru groaned before smiling. "Well, I've got nothing better to do."

* * *

Kakashi walked back into Naru's room to find her standing on her bed and shouting obscenities at a wooden Shogi board. Gai was staring in wide-eyed shock at the words flying from her mouth. Kakashi grinned behind his mask. If there was one thing Naru hated more than the hospital, it was losing.

"Naru, calm down before they sedate you. That red headed nurse doesn't like you, so you know she'd do it in a heartbeat."

Naru blinked before growling at him. "Where have you been!"

Kakashi shrugged, "I went out."

Gai smiled at his friends. "Well, I've got to go. I was due home an hour ago. See you guys later."

Kakashi and Naru bid Gai goodbye before turning to each other. Kakashi picked up a game piece that fell off the table. "Want to play me?"

"No I don't want to play you! I don't ever want to play this stupid game again!"

Kakashi sighed before setting the pieces up and sitting across from Naru. "Sit Naru, we're playing. You're a smart shinobi Naru, but you're hasty. You could win this if you calmed down and thought your plan out. It's a strategy game, not a game of strength."

Naru huffed before crossing her arms and sitting on the bed across from Kakashi. She quickly set up her own pieces before looking at him expectantly. "You want to go first?"

Kakashi nodded and moved a pawn one square forward. "Naru, we've got to talk."

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

Usually when Kakashi said 'we've got to talk' it was something big. I quickly looked up at him before training my eyes on the checkered board and moving one of my pawns on the right side of the board. "About what?"

Kakashi moved one of his pawns on the right side and captured my pawn. "Do you remember the Fujiwara family?"

I nodded and moved a rook to capture one of his pawns. I resisted the urge to shiver as I was assaulted with images of that assassination. "All too well. What about it?"

Kakashi peered at the board before moving a knight to protect his king. "They had a daughter. Fujiwara Hana."

I thought over the information I remembered and that seemed correct. "She was about four right?" I waited for his answer as I moved one of my middle pawns.

"Yeah, she's about four, but the reason I brought it up is because I saw her in the marketplace today." Kakashi moved his left bishop forward and captured another one of my pawns.

I glared at his approaching bishop before quickly moving my knight to capture his bishop. "Oh? Is she okay?"

He shook his head slowly, "No she's far from okay. They treat her horribly Naru, simply horribly. It's almost as bad as how the villagers treated Dad." I watched as he moved his lance forward a few squares. "She reminded me of you."

I blinked before looking up and locking eyes with him. I immediately understood what he was getting at. Hana reminded him of me during the earliest years of neglect and loneliness. I carelessly moved my bishop away from Kakashi's lance and looked up at him. "What did you do?"

"I helped her up after she fell and went to talk to the Hokage. I couldn't just let her stay there. It's not right and I don't want her to go through the pain she's going through. Isn't it bad enough that she lost her parents?" Kakashi made a mistake and moved his second rook forward and into my territory.

I moved forward and captured his rook. "What are we going to do?"

Kakashi shrugged. "The Hokage said it would be easy getting her out of her grandparent's house, but hard to find her a loving home. I guess we could be on the lookout and if we find anything, suggest them to the Hokage."

I watched in disbelief as Kakashi's lance stopped right in front of my king. "Ote."

I resisted the urge to slap myself. He played me well. "Of course, of course. Let's go again. I'm winning this time."

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

A few days passed and both Kakashi and Naru found themselves once again in the village while their respective parents were out on a mission. Shiri happily accompanied the two wherever they went. She refused to leave after Naru collapsed and has since been babying the girl like only a motherly wolf can. Today though, Shiri was waiting at home for them. The sky was darkened with clouds and looked like it was going to rain, so Shiri opted to stay home.

Naru had just been released from work when the distant yelling of a little boy caught her attention. Kakashi heard it too and began following Naru as she went off in the direction of the little boy's voice. Before Sakumo left, he had given Kakashi specific orders to make sure he walked Naru home after she was finished at the Hokage's office for the day. Kakashi still wasn't sure why his Dad wanted him to do it, but he wasn't going to complain to the man.

Naru's day had been long and tiring. She started every day by working the mission desk with the Hokage and taking reports from the incoming shinobi. About noon they would break for lunch and afterwards she would go to her session with Inoichi. After the session with Chōza went so well, Inoichi started training her body to not react so violently to surprise touches. He was training her body to differentiate between a friendly touch and an unfriendly touch. Kakashi's bruised jaw was enough to convince Naru her reaction to touch was something she needed to take care of. For the past couple of sessions Inoichi had gotten a couple of his friends to randomly follow Naru throughout the Hokage Tower and make a grab for her. Only problem was that he didn't warn Naru beforehand and she nearly broke the arm of one of the men. She apologized afterwards, but she still felt bad about cracking his ulna.

Overall, Naru was getting better at reacting to surprise touches. Inoichi had successfully managed to sneak up behind her and grab her arm. At first he thought she was going to hit him, but she relaxed her body and grinned as she turned around to greet him. Inoichi was proud of her progress; she was remembering to check for chakra signals before attacking and she was dealing well with the aftermath of her capture. She was doing excellent and would be back on active duty sooner than they thought.

Naru's eyebrows scrunched together in confusion as she tried to place the voice she was hearing. It was obviously a younger child, but she couldn't remember where she had heard the voice before. Then she felt the chakra signals.

"Damn, Etsu is here."

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

Just great. I really didn't want to deal with her today and now it's either ignore the kid or deal with Etsu. I turned to Kakashi and saw that he felt her too. "Make a choice Naru."

The kid's yelling increased and I couldn't help but want to help him. He wasn't in any trouble, but it bothered me that he was so angry. I sighed before walking forward. "Fine, let's see if we can bypass Etsu and find the kid."

We weren't so lucky. It turned out that Etsu and her genin team was actually on a D-ranked mission taking care of four-year-old Umino Iruka. The little boy did not like being ignored and was trying everything in his power to get the older children to play with him. Etsu was clearly not amused and simply rolled her eyes at him. A fierce spark of hatred welled in my chest. How dare she treat Iruka-sensei like that! Kakashi touched my arm and pointed to Etsu's teammates. They were simply lying around and giggling to each other. Suzume and Aimi were laid out, completely ignoring Iruka as well. Iruka finally got fed up and stomped away from the group. Etsu's mocking laughter followed him.

Somewhere after I saw them ignoring Iruka something snapped inside and I was tired of Etsu's crap. "Etsu! If this is a mission then you're failing it."

Etsu turned and sneered at me. "If it isn't Naru. How was Iwa? Enjoy the sights?"

Kakashi's menacing growl from beside me kept me from attacking the girl off of pure instincts. Etsu actually looked terrified as Kakashi stood in front of me and dared Etsu to say something else. Apparently Etsu had a death wish.

"I'm simply congratulating her on coming back home Hatake. I mean look, she even got that hideous hair cut while she was gone."

Kakashi stopped growling and snorted. "It's better than yours."

I couldn't stop grinning as Etsu sputtered before placing her hands on her hips and leaning toward us, trying to look intimidating. "Look _children_ , the only reason my team took this mission is because the kid refuses to tell anyone how we treat him. He's perfectly fine on his own and we get paid well because of who his daddy is."

I walked around Kakashi and got close enough to touch Etsu. "That's despicable. Just because he refuses to tell on you doesn't mean you should be cruel to him. All he wants is someone to play with and you won't even do your job! You are a disgrace to your headband!"

Etsu looked positively vile as she twirled a stray piece of hair on her finger and laughed. "Well, at least I didn't let Iwa make me their bitch."

I snapped and through the red haze of Kyuubi's anger I saw Kakashi appear behind Etsu and pull her into a headlock. He saw the danger immediately and tried to get Etsu out of the clearing, but she wasn't going with him. Just when Etsu was about to get thoroughly beaten, a pain filled scream echoed through the park.

The red haze disappeared as I recognized the scream. "Iruka!"

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Little Iruka was upset and simply wanted someone to pay him some attention. His so-called babysitters weren't doing their job, so he decided to find his own fun. The park was located right beside one of Konoha's famous gardens and Iruka loved to walk amongst the hanging flowers and trees. His mommy and daddy were usually busy though and couldn't take him to the gardens. So when Iruka decided to have his own fun, he walked through the front gates of the garden and onto one of the many paths that entered into the heart of the garden.

Iruka eventually made his way into the center of the garden and smiled as he saw the metal fence that surrounded the famous First Tree of Konoha. Legend claimed that the very tree Iruka was looking at was the first tree the First Hokage grew when he decided the village was going to reside on the land. It was located directly in the center of the village and possibly the oldest tree in the entire village. Because of the fame of the tree, a fence was erected around it to keep curious civilians and children away from climbing in it. Shinobi were advised to leave the tree alone too, but there was really no way, short of using a jutsu, that would keep the shinobi out of it.

Iruka, though, didn't care. He simply wanted to touch the trunk of the tree and feel the grainy ancient wood. Iruka quickly peered around the clearing and grinned when he noticed he was completely alone. With a few small steps and a death grip on the metal fencing, Iruka began pulling his small body up the fence. He was halfway up the fence before the wind started blowing and, with Iruka's extra body weight, the fence became top-heavy and began to sway. Iruka whimpered as he felt the fence sway, but he was determined to touch the tree. As he neared the top of the fence a bird flew out of the tree and startled the little boy.

Iruka's eyes widened as he felt the fence begin to fall backward. His grip on the metal fencing increased and the metal sliced into his soft hands. The pain caused Iruka to cry out and lose his grip. As he fell to the earth with the fence, Iruka allowed his body to prepare for the impact. Luckily, he landed in a grassy area, but he wasn't prepared for the sharp underside of the fence's wire to slice across his face. He screamed as he felt the blood pour from the cut and sharply ache with each passing second. All Iruka knew was that he wanted his daddy.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

Etsu looked almost apologetic after we found Iruka in the garden with his tears and blood mixing together. After Iruka refused to stop crying she yelled at him and called him a 'crybaby,' only encouraging him to scream more. Naru snarled in disgust before kneeling to Iruka's level and taking his hand. I watched in amazement as Naru's gentle tones calmed Iruka enough for the boy to look at her. I quickly took a few bandages out of my weapons pouch and handed them to Naru. She placed them over the weeping slash before rubbing his back and wiping the tears from his eyes.

Iruka sniffled before fully looking at Naru. "Y-you made daddy pretty."

I smiled behind my mask; the kid remembered the Jounin prank. Naru nodded and laughed softly. "I did make your daddy pretty. How about we go see daddy? We need to get your face taken care of."

Iruka sniffled a few more times before nodding. "What 'bout Etsu-meanie?"

I looked over to the trembling genin; they were in so much trouble for not watching the boy. "Don't worry Iruka-chan; they'll be taken care of."

Iruka looked up at me with an angry look on his face. Climbing to his feet, he walked away from Naru and peered up at me with wide eyes. The top of his nose was still pouring blood even with the bandage pressed against it. He pouted before mumbling he didn't like being called 'Iruka-chan.' I blinked in shock as he glared at me before rearing his foot back and solidly kicking me in the shin. I bit back a yelp and a couple of curses before glaring at the little brat. Naru was trying her hardest to not laugh before picking Iruka up and beginning to walk back to the T&I building.

While she was taking Iruka to Shima, I looked over to the group of girls. "Let's go to the Hokage's office. He's going to need to know about this."

The girls groaned, but followed after me anyway. After I informed the Hokage of the situation he calmly dismissed me before ripping into the group of genin. I didn't stick around to hear their entire punishment, but they were all suspended and banned from taking babysitting missions. Another year was added to their original punishment for chunin promotion and they were going to visit with Shima later.

Personally, I think having to visit with Shima was the worst part. From personal experience I know most fathers tend to get a little upset when their children are injured. I chuckled to myself as I walked out of the Hokage Tower and toward the house.

What I didn't expect, though, was to be caught in a pouring rain. By the time I got to the house my clothes were soaked through. I walked into the cool house and shivered before heading into my room to change. By the time I was in dry clothes an annoying itch had begun to form in the back of my throat. I coughed to try and get rid of it before going back to washing the clothes. There was no way I was getting sick.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I climbed the steps to the T&I building as quickly as I could. I didn't want Iruka to lose any more blood than he already had. From his concealed giggles I could tell he was over the worst part of his scare and pain. The wound wasn't bleeding as bad as it was, but it still looked really bad. Shima was going to flip.

I entered the T&I building and asked where Umino Shima was at. The ANBU on guard looked at the little boy in my arms before leading me down a corridor and into a nice office. Shima was sitting behind the desk with his feet propped up and reading over a scroll. His eyes widened as he saw Iruka in my arms. "What happened!"

He jumped up and took Iruka from my arms. He placed Iruka on his desk before carefully peeling the bandage away from his son's face. Iruka whimpered as sticky skin was pulled away from the bandage. Shima sighed before pointing to the glass on his desk. "Take that glass down the hall and get some water. I've got to clean the blood away."

I did as he said and waited patiently as he tried to calm Iruka and clean the blood away. Iruka bravely allowed his daddy to take care of him and waved shyly at me. Shima smiled softly before sighing and turning to me. "He needs stitches. I'm going to get a medic-nin and then we'll talk about what happened."

Shima left and I walked over to talk to Iruka. He yawned before holding his hands out towards me. I couldn't help but take him into my arms and let him cuddle against me chest. "I like you."

That giddy fan-girl feeling welled up in me and I gently ran my fingers through his hair. "I like you too Iruka."

He looked up at me and smiled. "You know my name! I don't know your name. What's your name?"

"Naru."

Iruka tightened his grip around my neck as Shima walked back in with a medic. Shima tried to take him away from me, but Iruka's grip tightened around my neck. He shook his head, "Wanna stay with Naru!"

Shima sighed before sheepishly looking at me. "Will you hold him while the medic-nin does his stitches?"

I nodded and sat in the chair in front of Shima's desk. The medic-nin deadened the skin around the wound by injected an anesthetic into the wound. Iruka cried out in pain, but soon found himself watching the medic-nin suture the gash together. After the medic-nin placed a loose bandage on the wound and advised Shima to keep the stitches from getting wet, he left, leaving me with a sleeping Iruka and questioning Shima.

"I hate making him get stitches whenever I know several jutsu that would bind his skin together, but since he's so young I think it would be best to let him heal naturally."

I nodded and handed Iruka over to him. "It will most likely scar."

"I know. So Naru, what happened for my son to get so injured?"

I shrugged. "From what I saw, the genin you hired were not watching Iruka. They were pretty much ignoring him and he wandered off. He was in the garden and it seems that he tried to climb the fence. It gave and he was injured."

Shima rubbed his temple. "Someone warned me about Mori Etsu, but I didn't listen. I bet this isn't the first time they ignored him either. Now I know why he's so clingy before he goes with them. Thank you for bringing him in. He seems to really like you Naru."

I grinned. "He said he likes me because I 'made you pretty.'"

Shima laughed. "You became quite the hero to him after that. Iruka keeps asking when I'm going to let you make me pretty again. Kita gets a kick out of it."

I talked with him for a few more minutes as he asked how I was doing and if I was adjusting well with Inoichi. After I started to leave Shima stopped me. "Naru, I know babysitting is a genin level mission, but Iruka really does like you. So if I ever need another babysitter, can I request you?"

I blinked in shock before nodding. Shima thanked me and I soon found myself walking towards the house deep in thought. It had stopped raining before I left Shima's office. The sun wasn't out yet, but the entire village smelled like rain. It brought back more memories of me and Iruka. Our roles had reversed completely. I went from being the one he protected to being his protector. It felt good giving back to the man that made me so happy.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Minato and Sakumo returned home right before Kakashi and Naru headed up to bed. Naru happily bounded over to welcome them home and offered to warm something up for them to eat. Since Naru was the only member of the household that wasn't going on missions, she had taken to worrying over her boys. She constantly commented on the fact that they should eat more and always made sure they left for a mission on a full stomach.

Minato shook his head before smiling and ruffling her hair. "We'll get it, sweetheart. You go on and go to bed. You've got an early morning tomorrow."

Naru nodded and told them both goodnight before heading up the stairs and getting ready for bed. Kakashi walked in and waved slowly. Sakumo tilted his head as he looked at his slightly flushed son. His cheeks were lightly pink and his forehead was glistening with sweat. Minato tossed Sakumo a look as he walked forward and placed his hand on Kakashi's uncovered forehead.

"You've got a fever Kakashi."

Kakashi shook his head slowly before blinking as if he was dizzy. "Not sick."

Sakumo nodded his head before lifting Kakashi into his arms and heading upstairs. "Sorry buddy, but you are. How long have you had a fever?"

Kakashi shifted in his arms and rested his head against Sakumo's chest. "I have a fever?"

Sakumo nodded. "Yeah, but it's not too high yet." Sakumo placed Kakashi in his bed before pulling the covers over his son's body. "Try to get some sleep Ka-chan. If you need something call and I'll get it for you."

Kakashi nodded slowly before drifting into an easy slumber. Sakumo walked downstairs to find Minato heating up the ramen Naru had made earlier. "Kakashi's sick."

"Yeah, I could tell from his face. Good thing I don't have a mission tomorrow, but I was hoping to get some training in with him."

Sakumo snorted before grabbing the water out of the refrigerator. "Don't mention that to him or he'll want to train anyway. I've got a mission, so do you think you can handle a sick Kakashi?"

Minato shrugged. "Shouldn't be any different than, oh wait, I forgot this _is_ Kakashi we're talking about."

Sakumo rolled his eyes at Minato. "I'll leave instructions for handling him before I leave."

Minato laughed. "For handling a sick Kakashi? Is your child really that difficult when he's sick?"

Sakumo shrugged. "I tend to baby him whenever he's sick because he's too out of it to even care. Plus, I worry about him. Sickness is one of those things I don't like dealing with because of…." Sakumo stopped speaking and left the room. The unsaid 'Nozomi' still resting on his tongue.

The truth was that no one knew why Nozomi died. The only thing the doctors and medic-nins could tell Sakumo was that she was sick. It was scary for Sakumo whenever Kakashi fell ill because Nozomi's sickness started off as a simple fever before developing into whatever it was that took her from Sakumo. The dark truth was Sakumo feared that one day some mysterious sickness would take Kakashi away too.

Minato sighed as he waited for Sakumo to return. He knew his friend was still hurting from his wife's death. Sakumo never fully grieved for Nozomi and had since been bottling everything down. It was unhealthy, but it wasn't something Minato could cure or heal. Deep down, Minato hoped Tohru would be the one to heal Sakumo. He was secretly hoping they would get together and Sakumo would finally be able to let Nozomi go.

Sakumo returned to the kitchen a few minutes later with a torn piece of paper. He handed it to Minato. "This is my grandmother's recipe for her favorite cold remedy, a hot toddy."

Minato snorted before taking the paper. "My mom used to make one that was so strong it would knock you on your back after drinking it."

Sakumo laughed. "Well, let's not get Kakashi drunk. A drunken seven-year-old is not something I would want to deal with."

"Yeah, and knowing your son as well as I do, he'd probably be a mean drunk."

"Well, let's hope we never have to find out."

Kakashi ended up spending the night coughing in his sleep, which kept Sakumo up half the night trying to soothe his cough. His temperature ended up rising to 100 degrees Fahrenheit, but after a very quick shower in chilly water his temperature dropped down to normal. Eventually Sakumo turned to his grandmother's hot toddy recipe in the hopes of soothing Kakashi back to sleep. The only problem was there hadn't been any alcohol in the house since he poured the last of his sake down the drain.

Sakumo believed he was strong enough to resist temptation, but he just hadn't seen the need to bring alcohol back into the house. He was regretting that when he had to go to the all-night store in the marketplace and buy the brandy needed for the drink. When he finally returned home, Kakashi was sound asleep and only coughing a little bit. Sakumo simply placed the bottle of brandy on the cabinet, along with the honey and lemon, and went to try to sleep before his mission.

Minato ended up waking up before everybody else in the house and seeing Sakumo off. "Take care of him, Minato. I should be back before the end of the day; it's just a simple escort mission."

Minato nodded and deeply drank from his cup of coffee. He heard Kakashi coughing after Sakumo left and headed upstairs to see the boy moaning against his pillow. He walked over and gently brushed his fingers over the boy's scalding forehead. "You okay 'kashi?"

Kakashi shook his head weakly. "Body hurts, Sensei."

Minato resisted the urge to pet Kakashi and call him a 'poor baby,' knowing his student wouldn't appreciate it. He sighed before gently rubbing circles in the middle of the boy's back. "I'll bring you something to take care of that cold."

Minato walked downstairs as Naru was leaving the house. He told her about Kakashi's cold and asked her to try and hurry home. Naru agreed as Minato got to work. He quickly skimmed over the recipe for the hot toddy before getting the ingredients ready. He took out a tablespoon, a knife, a large mug and the bottle of brandy before beginning to boil the water for the tea. The recipe called for one tablespoon of honey, one slice of lemon, tea and two shots of brandy. Minato nodded his head and whistled while he took the boiling pot of water off the stove. The only problem was as he moved the kettle, his grip slipped and hot water poured all along the counter, completely soaking the hot toddy recipe.

Minato froze in shock before placing the kettle on the counter and rushing over to see if the recipe could be saved. All he found was running ink and wet paper mush. Kakashi's coughing increased upstairs as Minato stared in shock at the once dry paper. He resisted the urge to smack himself in the head.

"Okay, this isn't horrible. I'll just eyeball it and hope I remember it. Let's see, I think it was one tablespoon of honey." He quickly poured some of the remaining tea into a large mug before adding one tablespoon of honey. "It had lemon in it too. I'll just squeeze two in there and then I'll change it up with the next cup." The juice of two lemons was squeezed into the mug. "Now, the brandy." Minato chewed on his bottom lip before looking at the bottle of brandy and at the mug. He removed the top and began pouring brandy into the mug. He quickly pulled it back before tilting his head and adding just a little bit more. "There, that should do it." Minato picked up the mug and added a little more honey before stirring the concoction together.

Minato walked upstairs and into Kakashi's room. "Here ya go buddy. This will get rid of your cough."

Kakashi rolled onto his back and tried to sit up. Minato helped him into a sitting position before handing him the mug. Kakashi scrunched his nose up in disgust before taking a sip. "It's strong."

Minato laughed. "That's just because you've never had it before. Drink up kiddo so you can get better."

Kakashi did as he was told and soon found himself feeling pleasantly warm and content. Minato grinned at the silly look on Kakashi's face before pushing his student to lie down and go back to sleep. Thirty minutes later Kakashi's coughing acted up again and Minato was faced with the decision of whether or not to fix him another drink. Neither Sakumo nor the recipe told him how often to give Kakashi a drink and he honestly couldn't remember what his mother used to do. So without anything hindering him, Minato fixed Kakashi another hot toddy. This time he added a little bit more brandy because the last amount didn't seem to affect his sick student. Minato also whipped up some soup for Kakashi's empty stomach.

Kakashi looked at the mug before smelling the alcohol. His heavy eyes turned to Minato before taking the cup. "Sensei?"

"Go on 'kashi. It'll help you get better."

Knowing his sensei wouldn't steer him wrong, Kakashi drank the entire contents of the mug before trying the soup.

Minato grinned as he took the empty dishes from Kakashi. His day was going great. Nothing could ruin his peace. Which is exactly why Minato fixed another mug of the hot toddy and sat it beside Kakashi's bedside, just in case the boy needed it.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

Why is everything so fuzzy? On second thought, why am I sitting up? I don't remember sitting up. I slowly tilted my head and was completely surprised when I found myself sprawled out on the floor. Just how did I get on the floor? I brought my hand up to my face and looked at it. It felt so fuzzy and heavy, like I had socks on them. Speaking of socks, I looked down at my feet and saw nothing.

Okay, I can do this. I can get up. I slowly grabbed the edge of the bed and pulled myself up. Once on my knees I slowly got to my feet. I caught my reflection in the mirror on the door and blinked at it. Where did my shirt go? I quickly looked down at my body just to make sure I wasn't seeing things. Nope I didn't have a shirt on.

Did the fan-girls steal it again? Funny, I can't seem to make myself care. Okay, I need to get to the mirror. Something isn't right with my reflection. I slowly walked forward. Why is the room shaking so badly? I managed to make it to the mirror, despite the earthquake, and looked myself over. It wasn't until I made it to my stomach that I started freaking out. There was a hole in the middle of my stomach!

Oh god! My enemies had somehow figured out how to stab me in the stomach without drawing blood! I was going to slowly die wasn't I? They had probably injected some type of intestine eating worm and it was slowly turning my insides into a bed n' breakfast. I gingerly reached to touch the hole before remembering exactly what it was. Oh yeah, it's just my bellybutton. No harm there I suppose.

I made my way back over to the bed. There was that earthquake again; someone should really take care of that. I looked over to the bedside table and saw another mug of that stuff Sensei kept giving me. I shrugged once before drinking the concoction. It was sweet, but also with a hint of something really strong. I laid back down on the bed as the fuzzy feeling increased. I couldn't be drunk, could I?

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Minato jumped up when he heard the sound of something hitting the floor upstairs. He blinked the sleep from his eyes and quickly walked upstairs to make sure Kakashi was okay. He opened the door to find Kakashi back in the bed and resting against the pillows. Minato shrugged before walking back downstairs; obviously he was okay.

Naru tried hurrying home, but the mission desk was swamped. "Naru, can you start filing these reports while I finished taking the rest of the reports?"

Naru looked at the stack of papers in the other Chunin's hand before nodding. Obviously, she was not going home early. She knew Kakashi was sick and wanted to help her dad. Though she seriously doubted Kakashi would be that much of a problem.

"Naru, the Hokage wants you to report to Inoichi's office early today. He wants to let you off early today."

Silently Naru thanked her lucky stars before setting the stack of papers onto one of the filing cabinets before heading off to see Inoichi.

Kakashi woke up with the insane desire to challenge Gai to a competition. He didn't know why, but he figured it might have had to do with him dreaming about winning that pie-eating contest. He just couldn't figure out why they were both wearing green jumpsuits with orange legwarmers.

In his alcohol befuddled mind, Kakashi carefully climbed out of the bed and began searching for clothes. The first thing Kakashi tried to find was his mask. Luckily, he found it at the foot of this bed. Kakashi quickly tried to pull the black material over his head before noticing that it was unusually tight over the top of his head. Try as he might, he couldn't pull his mask over his hair. Kakashi pouted before leaving his mask alone and looking for his pants before realizing he was already wearing them.

A giggle escaped his throat as he looked for his shirt. The little rascal was hiding from him. Kakashi got down on his hands and knees to look underneath his bed for the shirt, only to find it clear. He carefully backed out from underneath the bed and walked slowly over to his opened closet. Kakashi found a crumpled up shirt in the back of the closet so he leaned over to pick it up. Unfortunately, he lost his balance and fell to the ground.

After Minato heard the second bang of the day, he knew something was up. He quickly went upstairs and stared in shocked silence at his pink-cheeked student. There Kakashi sat, with a black sock pulled halfway over his hair and a crumpled shirt in his hands. "'Kashi? You okay?"

Kakashi blinked before looking over at Minato. "Sen- _hic_ -sei!"

Cool dread filled Minato's stomach as he watched Kakashi attempt to stand to his feet before losing his balance and hitting the floor again. Kakashi blinked rapidly before looking at Minato with an accusing look. "Did you move the floor?"

Laughter threatened to bubble up in Minato as he tried to not notice how adorable Kakashi looked with his lower lip sticking out and his arms crossed across his chest in annoyance. "Okay 'kashi, I think I may have given you a little too much brandy. You might be safer downstairs with me."

Kakashi shook his head. "Nope! I good here!"

Minato bit down hard on his tongue to keep from laughing at Kakashi's deteriorating grammar and enunciation. The alcohol was starting to slur his speech. Sakumo was going to kill Minato once he came home and found his drunken seven-year-old.

"No kiddo, we need to get you downstairs. Come on, I'll carry you."

Kakashi held up a hand and shook his head. "I'm not a child! I don't need me to carry you."

Minato chuckled. "Don't you mean, 'you don't need you to carry me?'"

"That's what I said."

Minato shook his head as Kakashi pulled himself to his feet and began walking to the door. He stopped before he left the room and pointed to the shirt. "Sensei, can you get me that shirt?"

Minato nodded before snatching the sock off of Kakashi's head and pulling the shirt over him. Kakashi thanked him before beginning his journey down the hall. Minato watched as Kakashi practically bounced back and forth between the walls of the hall. "Kakashi, I don't think it's safe to let you walk down the stairs like that."

Kakashi stopped and turned around quickly, effectively causing him to stumble. Minato raced forward and picked Kakashi up before the boy could hit the ground. "Your father is going to kill me."

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

So I raced home after my session with Inoichi, only to find Kakashi sitting on the living room floor staring intently at Aki. The little puppy was staring back just as intently. Every time Kakashi would cough, Aki would bark. Every time Kakashi would move, Aki would follow his every move. He didn't even notice me walk in until I was right beside him.

"Kakashi? Something wrong?" He giggled. I blinked. Hatake Kakashi giggled? I knew something was wrong then. "Scarecrow, you okay?"

"Well, he's a little drunk."

I turned around to see my Dad guiltily peering into the room from the kitchen. I raised an eyebrow at him. Shiri growled menacingly at him. "He's drunk? How did you get him drunk?"

Dad shrugged, "I ruined the recipe and apparently I can't eyeball amounts right and he ended up getting a lot of brandy."

I watched as Kakashi crawled closer to Aki and gently pulled her ears up, 'til they were standing straight on top of her head. "Kakashi, what are you doing?"

Kakashi didn't even look at me before answering. "I think Aki's right ear is bigger than her left. Will that impair her hearing?"

I shook my head before walking into the kitchen. "Sensei is going to kill you."

Dad hid his face in his hands. "Don't remind me!"

"What are you going to do?"

Dad sighed. "We could always give him another one, in the hopes that he'll fall back to sleep."

I raised an eyebrow at him. "There is no 'we' in this. You're the one that got him drunk, so you fix him. Giving him another one isn't going to help. Did you try giving him some tea? Maybe the warmth would lull him to sleep."

"That's actually a good idea. Hang on, let me fix him some and you can take it to him."

A few minutes later I had the cup of tea and was trying to coax Kakashi into drinking it. "Come on Kakashi, drink the tea and go to sleep."

Kakashi shook his head and blinked the dizziness from his eyes. "No sleep."

I nodded my head and handed him the tea. He took one look at it before attempting to take a drink and missing his mouth completely. I felt like tearing my remaining hair out of my head, but instead broke out into laughter. "Dad, the tea won't work if he can't make it into his mouth!"

Kakashi looked at the puddle of tea around him and blinked. "I made a mess. I'll fix it!"

I watched as he began to perform the hand seals for a water jutsu. Before I could stop him, or catch my breath from laughing so much, he let out a nice sized stream of water. His jutsu completely flooded the kitchen and part of the living room. Shiri sighed before walking over and attempting to push Kakashi away from the standing water. Aki innocently began hoping around in the water, until Shiri howled at her to stop. The puppy whimpered before scampering after her adopted mother.

Dad looked around the disaster area before disappearing into the kitchen. He walked back out before turning to me. "Go upstairs and get him something to change into." I nodded and quickly came back down with a pair of sweatpants and a shirt. Dad pointed to the kitchen. "Go in there and watch the tea boil."

I did as he said while he convinced Kakashi to change clothes. Dad returned with the wet clothes and tossed them into the laundry room. He walked over to the boiling tea and eyeballed the bottle of brandy before turning the bottle upside-down and letting the alcohol pour into the cup of tea. "What are you doing?"

Dad turned before adding a few drops of honey. "Well, I've got to clean up the small lake in the living room and I can't do that with him bouncing about. I'm hoping this will knock him out."

Only problem was that it didn't knock him out. No, it did the exact opposite. Kakashi was even more wired up. He attempted to help Dad clean up the water, but that didn't go exactly as planned. Dad eventually placed him on the couch and threatened him if he even thought about moving off of it. I was too busy laughing to be much help.

It wasn't until the afternoon waned that Dad remembered Sensei was supposed to be back from his mission early. "Okay, Shiri, go to the gate and watch for him with Naru. Naru, I need you to stall him as long as you can."

I looked at him in disbelief. "You want _me_ to stall Hatake Sakumo while you try to sober up his son?"

"Yeah, is that a problem?"

"Only if I have a death wish!"

Dad rolled his eyes before running a hand though his hair. "You're exaggerating Naru."

I furiously shook my head. "I'm not exaggerating! I've lived and trained with him long enough to see exactly how sadistic he can get with his revenge. You weren't here when we dyed his hair green."

"You're just being paranoid…..wait a minute, you dyed his hair green!"

I tapped my foot against the floor. "Yes, but that's a story for another day. What I'm trying to say is that he terrifies me!"

Dad sighed before looking around the room. "Where's Kakashi?"

"I'm right here Sensei!"

Dad looked around the room before slowly raising his eyes to look toward the ceiling. There Kakashi stood staring intently at the ceiling he was standing on. I quickly clamped a hand over my mouth to keep the yelp of shock from startling him and breaking his concentration. Dad was taking several deep breaths by now and closed his eyes before talking. "Kakashi, why are you on the ceiling?"

Kakashi blinked before giggling again. It was really strange to find out that Hatake Kakashi was a giggly drunk. Maybe it was just the age? "I'm not on the ceiling, Sensei. If I were on the ceiling, then I couldn't do this." I felt my eyes widened as Kakashi disrupted his chakra and began to fall to the ground. Dad instantly ran over and caught him before he hit the floor. Kakashi tilted his head as Dad clutched him to his chest. "Oh, I guess you were right."

I shook my head and began to walk out the door laughing my head off. "I'm going to stall Sensei. Try to sober him up."

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Minato clutched Kakashi to his chest before carrying the boy upstairs and turning on the shower. Once the water was chilly enough, he simply dropped Kakashi into the cold shower.

"COLD!"

Kakashi shot out of the shower and glared at Minato. Kakashi tried to keep his teeth from chattering as he spoke. "S-ss-sensei, ww-wh-what was t-tt-that?"

Minato wrapped a large towel around Kakashi before ushering him into his room. "Get dressed in dry clothes."

Minato left the room and went downstairs to make sure the floor was completely clean before heading back into Kakashi's room. He found his genius student trying to fit both legs into one pant leg. Kakashi looked up at Minato with a pitiful look that screamed 'help me.' Minato walked over and straightened Kakashi's clothes.

Minato guided Kakashi down the stairs and sat him on the couch so he could fix Kakashi some coffee in the hopes of sobering the boy up. The coffee didn't work and Minato found himself looking at a still tipsy Kakashi. Finally Minato succumbed to his fate and hoped Sakumo wouldn't notice.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

Shiri and I got lucky, really lucky. We met Sakumo-sensei as he was heading back from giving the Hokage his mission report. He looked tired, but not angry. So I concluded that my chance of actually succeeding my mission grew a little higher than it originally was. Shiri gave me a hopeful look before running over to Sakumo and greeting him. I listened to her excited greetings as she tried to stop him in the road. He wasn't listening though; he petted her head before mentioning that he wanted to hurry home so he could see Kakashi.

I groaned as I heard him mention Kakashi. If I could just stall him for a few minutes that could mean the difference between Dad living or dying. I mentally prepared myself as I ran forward. "Welcome back Sensei!"

Sensei smiled at me before ruffling my hair. "How's Kakashi?"

I hoped my face didn't give anything away as I answered. "Fine. He's feeling tons better."

"That's good. Well, come on, let's hurry home."

He began to walk faster before I could stop him. I was almost freaking out before yelling out. "Sakumo-sensei stop!"

He stopped and turned around to look at me. "Something wrong Naru?"

I nodded my head before frantically trying to make up a story. "Well, you see, you almost stepped on Tomo!" Shiri looked at me like I was crazy and I felt completely stupid for what I was about to say.

"Tomo?"

I looked down at Shiri before nodding. "Yeah, Tomo, my umm imaginary friend." Shiri shook her head before walking over to stand beside Sensei. I felt like a complete idiot, but I ran with the story. "He's been my friend for so long and he's only five inches tall."

Sensei looked at me worriedly before walking forward and kneeling in front of me. He placed his hand underneath my forehead protector before placing the back of his hand against my cheek. "You might have caught Kakashi's cold Naru, because you're not acting yourself."

He started to get up as I frantically tried to think of another way to stall him. That's when it hit me. As he was getting ready to stand, my eyes trained on the handle of his tanto strapped to his back. It was suicide, but it might just work. If I could grab his tanto I could probably get a little ways away before he caught up with me. I felt my hands flex as I leaned forward to make a grab for the tanto. Dad better appreciate this and say something nice at my funeral.

Sensei never knew what hit him as I reached over his shoulder, grabbed the tanto, and high-tailed it out of there.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo watched with amused eyes as Naru quickly ran away with his tanto. He wasn't having a bad day, even though he was tired, and Naru's little spontaneous game of prey was just what he needed to unwind from his mission. As he started after his student, he couldn't help but wonder exactly what kind of trouble Naru and Kakashi had gotten into. He vaguely wondered if Minato was their victim.

Shiri ran beside him and pointed towards the right trail that led into the training grounds, but Sakumo's instincts and nose were telling him to head left towards the park. He looked at his ninken before shaking his head; even Shiri was in on trying to stall him. They must have done something huge or they wouldn't be trying so hard to keep him away from the house.

"Now Shiri, we both know she didn't head towards the training grounds."

Shiri gave him a wolfish grin, "I had to buy her some time."

Sakumo snorted before taking off into the park. Naru was just ahead of him and if he added chakra to his legs, he was pretty sure he could catch her. Instead, Sakumo decided to let her sweat while he followed behind leisurely. Naru kept turning around and frantically trying to gain speed as he was getting closer. Sakumo finally decided to end their game and disappeared from behind Naru, only to reappear in front of her. She skidded to a stop before falling onto her backside.

Sakumo stared down at his student before grasping her ankle and lifting her up to look him in the eyes. Naru gave him a bright smile before handing over his tanto. "Here ya go, Sensei!"

Sakumo took the tanto and sheathed it before thinking aloud. "Now I wonder what I'm going to do with you?"

Naru chewed her bottom lip before answering, "You could always let me go."

Sakumo shook his head. "Nope, sorry, not gonna happen. Wait, I know what I'm going to do." Sakumo held Naru's ankle firmly in his hand before bringing up his other hand and attacking Naru's sides. Naru's laughter echoed around the park as Sakumo cruelly tickled her into a giggling mess.

"I give! I give!"

Sakumo laughed along with Naru before letting up on his attack and placing her on the ground. "Okay, are you ready to tell me why you were trying so hard to stall me?"

"Umm, can I not tell you and we pretend I did?"

Sakumo shook his head. "We could have another fun-filled morning of special workouts complete with a couple of games of 'Prey' mixed in with some conditioning training and a few mile-long jogs."

Naru's face was utterly stricken as she whimpered at the pain she knew she would feel after one of his training sessions. Stuck between choosing her loyalty to her father and her fear of her Sensei's sadistic streak, Naru was forced to make a choice. A choice she quickly made after the promise of one of his special training sessions. "Okay, okay, I'll talk! Dad gave Kakashi a little too much brandy in his hot toddy and he kind of got drunk."

Sakumo blinked. "Kind of?"

Naru nodded. "He's completely drunk. He tried to walk on the ceiling and he's all giggly. It's kind of funny, but at the same time completely serious."

Sakumo sighed before shaking his head and chuckling. "The man can remember complex seals, but he couldn't remember a three line recipe? Let's go home and see about Kakashi."

When Sakumo got home, Kakashi was sitting on the couch watching Aki roll a ball around the floor. As soon as Sakumo walked through the door, Kakashi was up and running towards him with the energy of a small puppy. Sakumo braced himself as Kakashi plowed into his leg and attached himself there like a baby koala. "Dad's home!"

Naru giggled from behind Sakumo as the man attempted to pull Kakashi off his leg without very much success. Sakumo was stuck between yelling at Minato and laughing at his intoxicated son. "Yeah Dad's home, so how about you let Dad go so he can get to the couch?"

Kakashi shook his head before nuzzling his head against Sakumo's leg. "Missed you."

It melted Sakumo's heart at Kakashi's little declaration of emotion as he reached down and ruffled Kakashi's hair. "I missed you too."

Stiffly, Sakumo dragged his 'Kakashi covered leg' over to the couch and glared at the pair of laughing blondes. He reached down in an attempt to get his son to release his leg, but stopped as he saw Kakashi cuddling against his limb. "Exactly how much alcohol did you give him?"

Minato shrugged. "Enough to be considered unhealthy, but on the bright side, he hasn't coughed since lunch time."

Sakumo snorted with laughter. "Yes, he may be drunk off his rocker, but he's getting over his cold. If he's sick tomorrow, you're dealing with it."

Naru cleared her throat before quickly moving away from Minato. "Sensei, is that really a good idea? Considering everything that happened today?"

Sakumo chuckled before agreeing with Naru. Minato growled lowly before walking over to sit beside Sakumo and ruffle Kakashi's hair. "He may be a little drunk, but he's still alive."

Kakashi looked up at Minato before sniffling and wiping his nose with the back of his hand. "That's what I thought after we pranked the Jounin and ANBU. I was glad we were still alive and not beaten into a bloody pulp."

Sakumo blinked down at his son. "What are you talking about Kakashi?"

Naru grinned as Kakashi laughed. "We haven't told you yet? There was itching powder and paint. Rafu looked really nice covered in paint and honey. Then there was Shima covered in glitter and the ANBU's uniforms changed colors!" The entire time Kakashi was telling his version of the prank, he was waving his hands around so much Sakumo was finding it hard to not laugh at his son.

Naru nodded as Kakashi nearly lost his balance before grabbing hold of Sakumo's leg again. "Yeah, we kind of pranked the Jounin and ANBU while you were on that mission to Fort Kei. We broke into the ANBU headquarters and booby trapped their lockers. We also cast a genjutsu over their uniforms so they would change colors."

Kakashi interrupted, "Then we took apart the smoke bombs and replaced the stuff inside with itching powder. Then there was something with seals and pins and bees. I think we nailed the Hokage too."

Sakumo turned to Naru to translate. "We asked Dad if there was any way to target specific people, which led to us making special seals to put on leaf shaped pins. We then filled storage scrolls with paint, honey, cornstarch and other sticky stuff that would stick very well on clothes and in hair. We did get the Hokage, but we didn't target him per se. He was just caught in the crossfire. The ANBU were pretty ticked, but it was overall an enjoyable experience."

Kakashi began coughing at that point as Sakumo laughed at their tale. "I can't believe you two did that!"

Kakashi shivered against Sakumo's leg before sluggishly looking around for something while Naru further explained their prank. He turned alcohol muddled eyes on Minato before releasing his grip on Sakumo's leg and crawling to his Sensei. Minato watched in surprise as Kakashi crawled onto the couch and into his lap. He cuddled into Minato's lap before mumbling quietly to himself. "Sensei warm, 'kashi cold."

Minato looked over at Sakumo before shrugging as Sakumo laughed. Naru grinned at the two men. "We should get Kakashi drunk more often because he's more entertaining this way."

Sakumo picked up a pillow and playfully tossed it at Naru. "You are so getting another game of 'Prey' as soon as you are cleared for training."

Kakashi ended up sleeping most the evening, but he eventually did wake up a whole lot sicker than when he went to sleep. Sakumo turned to Kakashi as he heard his son whimper in his sleep. It was the same whimper he used to make before he threw up. Sakumo wondered if he should warn Minato before deciding the man would just have to learn the hard way. Kakashi whimpered once more before lifting his head and turning a very sickly shade of green.

Before Sakumo could warn Minato of the immediate danger, Kakashi leaned over the couch and vomited across the floor. Right on Minato's feet. Sakumo had to bite his lip to keep from laughing at the horrible look of disgust that formed on Minato's face. Kakashi continued coughing the vile mess out of his throat before wiping his mouth off with the back of his hand and looking up at Minato.

"Sorry sensei."

Minato waved if off and took a deep breath. "It's okay Kakashi. I think I deserved that."

Sakumo stood up and picked Kakashi up from Minato's lap. He gently rubbed circles into Kakashi's back before looking at the mess across the floor. "I hate to ask this Minato, but can you get that?"

Minato nodded as Sakumo headed upstairs with Kakashi in his arms. Another couple of concealed whimpers from Kakashi had his father heading towards the bathroom so he could empty the rest of his stomach. Naru had been reading a book in Sakumo's den when she heard the distinguishable sound of someone vomiting. She entered the living room and helped Minato clean the floor while Sakumo tended to Kakashi upstairs. Sakumo spent most of the night taking care of Kakashi and trying to lessen the pain of his first hangover. It didn't work very well and Kakashi ended up with a horrible, pounding headache.

The next morning Kakashi sat at the kitchen table cursing the loudness of the chirping birds and brightness of the sun. Naru walked over and handed him a cup of strong tea to settle his stomach. Kakashi looked up at her. "I don't remember much of yesterday. Did I do something blackmail worthy?"

Naru laughed. "I've got enough blackmail worthy stuff to last years."

Kakashi glared at Naru before rubbing his temple. "We never speak of this again. Got it?"

Naru grinned. "We'll see about that."

* * *

Jiraiya stared in disbelief at his informant. "What the hell did you just say to me? You better not be lying or I'll gut you like the pig you are!"

"J-Jiraiya-sama, I'm telling the truth! Whirlpool fell to Iwa yesterday. The entire village was wiped out, including the members of the daimyo's family."

Jiraiya stared across the ocean before looking back at the scruffy looking man in front of him. "Were there any survivors?"

"None."

A red haired woman flashed through Jiraiya's mind. "What about a woman by the name of Uzumaki Kushina? She was the daughter of the late daimyo of Whirlpool. She was visiting her family for a few weeks. Did anyone see her or hear from her?"

The man sighed deeply. "When we entered the Uzumaki family's home there were bags packed and labeled under the name of Uzumaki Kushina, but we wouldn't know what she looked like."

Jiraiya nodded before looking over the man once more. "Fine, I'll report back later."

Jiraiya ran the entire way back to Konoha. He went to the Hokage's office long enough to inform him of the turn of events and request to be the one to inform Minato. The Third protested at first before relenting. Jiraiya found his student in Konoha's Library on the restricted level.

"What are you doing here Jiraiya?"

Jiraiya winced at the cold voice Minato used before sighing and walking over to sit beside his one time student. "Minato, I've got some bad news."

Minato looked up and stopped flipping his book. "What kind of news?"

"A few days ago, Whirlpool fell to Iwa and it was a massacre. There are no known survivors and Kushina's belongings were found among the wreckage. I'm so sorry Minato, but it's a good chance Kushina is dead."

Jiraiya watched as the book dropped from his student's hand and hit the floor. Minato was at the Hokage Tower requesting a search and rescue mission before Jiraiya even tried to pick up the fallen book.


	29. Chapter 26

**Chapter 26**

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sarutobi Hiruzen was in the middle of dealing with Fujiwara Hana's custody case when Minato burst into his office looking half-crazed and frantic. A part of Hiruzen briefly wondered how Minato got past the ANBU that were usually stationed outside his door. Speaking of the door, the poor thing never stood a chance against Minato. It was thrown open with enough force to splinter the elderly wood around the hinges and left a nice impression on the wall. Obviously Jiraiya told Minato about Whirlpool and he hadn't taken it very well. The Hokage was torn between ordering Minato to wait outside and asking the man he was interviewing to come back at another time.

"Hokage-sama! I…."

The Third held a hand up to silence the frantic man. "Minato, calm down. I should have expected this, but I'm in a meeting at the moment. Give me a few minutes and then I will be able to give you my undivided attention."

The man sitting in the chair stood. "Hokage-sama, please, Minato looks like his reason for meeting with you is urgent. I can gladly wait outside. Our meeting may take a long time."

Minato looked at the dark haired man with grateful eyes before turning back to the Hokage. The elder man sighed deeply before agreeing. "That's very considerate of you, Takumi. If you'll wait outside we can continue later."

Takumi gave the Third a two finger salute before lazily walking out through the ill-treated door and into the hallway where two ANBU guards were trying to stand up after the shock of having Minato rush between them. Takumi raised an eyebrow at both of them before walking down the hall and leaning against the vertical surface. His mind was buzzing with various thoughts and feelings surrounding one little girl, Fujiwara Hana.

Nara Takumi was a cousin of Nara Shikaku and though he didn't possess the same level of genius that Shikaku did, his intelligence was far above average. His intelligence coupled with an active mind made Takumi an excellent code breaker. He spent hours looking through coded scrolls and papers in order to connect the symbols and words together to form messages. It wasn't very exciting work, but Takumi loved it.

At one time, Takumi's ANBU team was one of the best in their line of work. With an expert weapons mistress, a genjutsu master and an excellent code breaker they took espionage by storm and completed most of their missions with high success rates. They were literally living the good life. Then a change happened. The weapon's mistress fell deeply in love with the genjutsu master and the team split. Takumi ruefully smiled as he fingered the ring on his right index finger, it had been a gift from them. The ring wasn't anything special, but it was given in love, which made it all the more important. Memories of happiness flew across Takumi's mind as he thought back over his friendship with Airi and Haru. He was the best man at their wedding and stood in the hallway when their daughter was born. They even named him godfather of the little girl, his little flower. He would even go as far as to say he loved the three of them.

Takumi mentally snorted as he continued his musing, yes, he loved the Fujiwara family like they were his own. It was Airi that shyly gave him his first kiss beneath the sakura trees when they were fourteen and drunk off of sweet sake. It was Haru that promptly punched him in the mouth for taking advantage of their female teammate, when deep down inside they both knew it was just jealousy and not chivalry that drove the boy to punch him. Hana was the first baby he ever called cute and allowed to drool on his shoulder. They were the first family that made him want his own. They were also the first friends to ever betray him and Konoha.

The saddened Nara closed his eyes as he remembered the last time he saw his friends, or rather the severed heads of his friends. Takumi had no idea what drove Airi, Haru and Goro to side with Iwa and he really didn't care to know, but he wished he could have stopped it. If it was money, then why didn't they ask him for help? It hurt to think they didn't trust him enough to let him help them with their troubles. Why turn to Iwa when he was only a short walk away? It hurt even more to think that they left little Hana all alone in the vicious world. It was obvious the girl was taking the blame for her parent's mistakes and the hollow look in her eyes tore apart Takumi's aching heart.

Hana was his responsibility. He had agreed at her birth to take care of her if the occasion ever arose, but with her maternal grandparents still alive Takumi believed she would adjust better to living with them. It seemed almost natural to let Airi's parents take care of their granddaughter and give her the complete family she deserved. Takumi would have given her warmth and love, but he was a shinobi and tended to border sarcastic and downright sadistic on a daily basis. He didn't think he would be the better choice for a guardian over her grandparents. Obviously he was wrong.

According to the Hokage's findings, Hana was being abused in the worst way possible by her grandparents. The mental and verbal abuse was hurting Hana's young mind and the Third feared for Hana's mental state if the abuse continued for much longer. Constantly she was told that her parents never loved her and she should have died with them. Little Hana wasn't able to cope with their harsh words and spent most of her time crying. Hana was also being neglected.

The ANBU stationed outside her bedroom window reported that at night the elders pretended Hana was not there and dared her to leave her room. One night, like most young children do, Hana had an accident while she was sleeping. Her grandparents didn't take too well to that and refused to change her sheets until morning. One of the female ANBU had been so disgusted by the thought of the little girl having to suffer through the night in wet sheets that she broke protocol and changed the sheets for Hana. That was the last night Hana spent in her grandparent's house because another team of ANBU was at the door at dawn to collect her. She was currently playing with the Hokage's youngest son Asuma and being watched by Katsu, the elder Sarutobi boy.

Takumi had a choice to make. He was the legal godfather of Fuijwara Hana and could have full custody over her. All he needed to do was sign a piece of paper and he could take her home with him. The clan would have to review Hana before letting her accept the 'Nara' name, but she would be safe from the hatred of others. Most Naras were intelligent enough to recognize that the daughter was not the mother and father. Hana knew him, so she wouldn't be wary of him, but he would have to change a little to make his lifestyle and home a little more 'kid friendly.'

Takumi sighed aloud before rubbing his eyes, taking on a kid would change his lifestyle. He might even need to find himself a girlfriend or at least learn to cook. Yeah, learning to cook really needed to come before finding a girlfriend if he wanted Hana to survive with him. Airi and Haru may have been traitors to Konoha, but Takumi wasn't going to let his goddaughter be unloved and unwanted. He couldn't help but shake his head at the thought. He supposed he already decided on the verdict, Fujiwara Hana would be Nara Hana before long.

Takumi looked towards the still open door before looking down the hall. He didn't know how long Minato would talk with the Hokage, but he hoped it would be long enough to find Shikaku. If Hana was going to live with him, she was going to take his last name, so the clan needed to review the act. It was better to start the review process as soon as possible so the transition would be smooth for Hana. Perhaps letting the Fujiwara name die out, or at least disappear for a few years, would be best for everybody. Takumi stuck his hands deep into his pockets and headed off in search of Shikaku.

* * *

"Minato, you know you're not supposed to just randomly burst into my office like that right? I mean look, the door's going to have to be replaced now."

Minato grinned guiltily, "Sorry Hokage-sama, but after I heard about Whirlpool and Kushina, I just couldn't help myself. I needed to get here as soon as I could. I need to know she's okay. I want to lead a team to see about her."

The Hokage sighed deeply. "Minato, I know she's your lover, but we've got to handle this situation delicately. Iwa tore through Whirlpool and destroyed almost everything in the dead of the night. Jiraiya's informant barely was able to get out himself. Yes, Kushina's belongings were found among the rumble, but that doesn't mean she was there."

Minato nodded, "I know sir! That's why I want to go and see if I can find her somewhere close by."

The Hokage gave him a small smile, "I'm sending a team to Whirlpool tomorrow morning to see if there are any survivors and to look for any clues Iwa may have left behind. You can go with them. You leave at dawn and will return in one week."

The Hokage locked his gaze with Minato. "If you can't find a sign of her within a week, then I have to mark her as 'deceased.'"

Minato broke the gaze to stare out the window. "Yes sir. I understand."

"Good luck, Minato."

Minato stopped before walking out the door and turned around to face the Hokage. "You won't have to worry about marking her as 'deceased'; I'm going to find her alive."

The Hokage watched as Minato calmly walked out of his office. The two ANBU stationed at the door peered in before sheepishly apologizing for not reacting sooner. Hiruzen waved it off before going back to his pile of paperwork for Hana's case. "Send Takumi back in."

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I hate my Sensei with a passion that rivals the heat of a thousand suns and judging from the look on Kakashi's face, the feeling is mutual. Kakashi is glaring a hole in the back of Sensei's head and looks like he's biting his tongue to keep from cussing the man. I was finally cleared for training a couple of days ago and since then both of our respective Senseis have taken turns handling our training. Currently Kakashi and I were doing push-ups with a starting weight of twenty pounds on our backs. The fun part of this exercise was if we didn't keep our backs straight, he added another pound. The other fun part was that Konoha was beginning spring and with spring came hotter weather. It was growing hotter and we were so sweaty that Kakashi couldn't stand to wear his mask.

"That's another pound Kakashi."

I winced for my friend and watched him stop so Sakumo-sensei could add the extra pound. That brought up his count to twenty-five pounds; mine was at a very uncomfortable twenty-three. Since I was cleared for training and my sessions with Inoichi were changed from once a day to once a week, the reality that we were going to war suddenly became real. I couldn't believe I was going to be deployed as soon as the Hokage gave our team the green light. It was difficult to imagine myself on a battlefield or even what battlefield life was like. I wasn't scared, but I was nervous. Kakashi seemed to take it all in stride though; of course, he had lived through this before.

"Okay you two; break for now and then we'll start again after lunch."

My arms gave out from underneath me and I let the weights slide off my back. It wasn't the weight that got to you; it was the number of push-ups that was performed. The longer you went, the heavier the weights felt. At one point I was sure Sensei was somehow magically increasing the weights from his position on the opposite side of the training field. I know I cleared three hundred and that was about one hundred push-ups ago. Kakashi moved over to the shade and rested his head against the trunk of the tree. I somehow managed to move my body over and sat down beside him. He looked over at me and pouted. I believe I will never get used to seeing Kakashi pout because he was too cute whenever he did it.

"I can't feel my arms."

I couldn't help but laugh. My own arms throbbed and were beginning to lose the feeling in them too. It was a strange, but rewarding feeling. Sensei walked over and tossed us two bentos. Kakashi caught one but couldn't quite reach the other. I simply didn't care; I wasn't even attempting to go after the box. Kakashi snorted with laughter before handing me the bento in his hand and reaching over to grab the other one. I thanked him and we silently began eating. Both too tired to even talk.

All too soon, Sensei called us over to him and instructed us to sit down. We sat and waited for his instructions. "As you both know, we're going to be deployed soon. I hate that it has to happen, but there is nothing I can do to keep you to from having to be deployed, nothing short of trying to get you both demoted and I have a feeling that is not going to happen." He smiled at us before looking over into the trees. "I know training lately has been horrible and hard and long, but there is a reason behind it. Minato and I are not trying to be sadistic bastards." I blinked just about the same time Kakashi did. We had never heard him cuss before. If Sensei noticed our surprise, he didn't say anything. "We want to teach and push both of you because we're afraid that the one thing we don't teach you will be the one thing that leads to your deaths." The clearing became eerily still and silent as he said those words.

Kakashi turned to Sensei. "What more can you teach us?"

Sensei looked at him. "There's so much more you two could learn, but we don't have enough time to teach you everything. You both are excellent shinobi, but even the most excellent shinobi can fall to simple tricks and maneuvers. Our best bet is to teach you what we can now and then coach as we go."

I smiled at Sensei. "Well, teach us Sensei."

Sakumo-sensei smiled, but it didn't quite reach his eyes. "I'm going to try."

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Minato was lost. He wanted to go right out and find Kushina himself, but he knew he had to follow the Hokage's orders. They couldn't run blind into Whirlpool because enemy forces could still be there. He hadn't felt this lost and alone since his parents died. Minato ran a hand through his hair before heading towards the training grounds where he could feel the chakra of Sakumo and the kids.

When he arrived at the training grounds, Naru and Sakumo were sparring in the middle of the clearing. Minato stood on the edge of the training ground and watched his daughter dodge and attack Sakumo with a skill unseen in most her age. Sakumo wasn't holding anything back, relentlessly attacking her. Minato knew why too. Iwa wasn't going to be easy on them, so why train the kids like they were? Naru managed to land a hit on Sakumo, but it cost her. He was able to get behind her and pull her into a headlock. Minato shook his head at the mistake before staring in shock as Naru disappeared in a puff of smoke. Sakumo quickly kicked behind him and connected with Naru's chest. Naru flew into the air before flipping and landing on her feet. She instantly propelled herself forward and tried to unbalance Sakumo. She didn't succeed the first time, but the three clones that suddenly jumped from the bushes along the side of the training ground did manage to unbalance Sakumo. He landed on the ground with Naru's kunai pressed against his neck.

Naru grinned at him as he congratulated her. "That's exactly what I want to see from now on. Little things like that can defeat the strongest of Jounin. Never forget teamwork can be used as another tool. You did good Naru." Sakumo turned to the tree line. "How ya doing Kakashi?"

Minato turned to see his student sitting along the underside of a thick tree branch. His eyes were closed in concentration as he tried to keep his chakra at an even distribution through his body, so he would stick safely to the tree. It was an amazing way to practice chakra control and build up chakra reserves. Kakashi slowly cracked open his eyes and answered his father. "I'm good and it's getting easier to multitask while concentrating on my chakra distribution."

Sakumo nodded, "Great. Now switch with Naru and we'll work on your hand-to-hand."

Minato decided now was the best time to interrupt. "Hey Sakumo, can you guys break real quick? I have something I need to tell everyone."

Sakumo agreed and soon Minato found three sets of eyes watching him. "I'm leaving on a mission tomorrow morning at dawn. The mission details are classified, but I can tell you that Whirlpool fell to Iwa a few days ago."

Sakumo's eyes widened. "Did Kushina make it back?"

Minato took a deep shuddering breath before shaking his head. "Her bags were found, but she wasn't. Supposedly there are no survivors. They don't know if she's somewhere in the rubble or was outside the village when everything went down."

Naru looked down at the ground, sadness oozing off of her as she did so. Kakashi shook his head to clear his mind of the surprised haze that had settled around him. In his mind, there was no way Kushina could be dead. She had to be alive.

Sakumo recovered first. "Maybe she left before. Kushina has been known to take off without her bags and have to get them sent to her. I'm sure she got out of there before anything happened."

Minato smiled ruefully, "I can only hope so."

Naru stepped forward and gently took Minato's hand. "Sorry daddy."

Minato closed his eyes and reached down to pick Naru up. He hugged her close to his chest, needing something to keep him grounded. Sakumo sighed, "Training is done for the day. Let's go help Minato pack for tomorrow."

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

Everyone was strangely quiet after we returned home. Naru was still keeping close to Sensei and making sure she was either hugging him or holding his hand. Even if Naru never had a family before, she knew that touch would go a lot farther than words because right now there were no words we could say to Sensei that would make him feel better. I wanted to believe that Uzumaki Kushina was okay and fine, but I didn't know for sure. I didn't know if we had somehow changed the future by being here. I didn't know if we had caused her premature death. That raised a question, did this mean Naru wasn't going to be born? Which raised another question, was Naru going to be born in six years or would it be another baby? Thinking about it gave me a headache because there was so much at play. Naru's soul was technically with her, so did that mean another soul would be used for the baby, if Minato and Kushina even have a baby? Would that baby become the carrier of the Kyuubi or was there a way to stop the attack?

I rubbed my eyes in frustration; it was all too much to wrap my mind around at this time. We needed those answers, but the only way to get them would be through Kyuubi or the Third. Naru was too busy with Sensei to bother questioning Kyuubi and the Third was trying to win a war. It was days like these that made me wish I were old enough to drink or smoke. Not that I ever want to touch alcohol again. I still can't remember everything from the hot toddy experience, but what I do remember makes me never want to touch alcohol again.

The clicking sound of nails hitting the floor caught my attention as Aki ran into my bedroom with her tail wagging. She was getting bigger, but she still had puppyish tendencies. She still liked to gnaw on toes and shoes, but she was now following Shiri around like a shadow and learning the rules of the pack. Kane had also taken a liking to Aki, which was surprising. Kane usually treated new members of the pack with indifference. Dad said it could have something to do with it being close to birthing season. Shiri hadn't had a litter since I was two and Kane had always been a softy with pups.

I whistled for her softly and watched as her tail wagged harder than before. She barked a few times before gently nudging my hand with her muzzle. I scratched her behind the ears and picked her up to walk downstairs. It was still bizarrely quiet and empty feeling. Sensei and Naru were nowhere to be seen and Dad was sleeping on the couch. He hadn't been sleeping very well with the insane amount of missions he was being sent on, plus the extra training he was doing and putting us through. I knew he was only getting about four hours of sleep a night.

I put Aki on the ground and walked over to the couch where he was snoring lightly. Thanks to his many years of shinobi training, he knew the exact instant I walked into the room. His entire body tensed before relaxing back into a state of sleep. Even in sleep he was every bit elite shinobi. I smiled slightly and covered him with the old blanket from the back of the couch. He stirred and opened one eye slowly, just to acknowledge my gesture. He reached up and ruffled my hair. He mumbled 'thanks' before drifting back off to sleep. I sighed and walked into the kitchen. I watched the sun slowly set all the while thinking about Kushina.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Minato watched as Naru snored happily on his bed. It was about dawn, the early morning light barely peeking over the Hokage Mountain. He would be leaving soon and hadn't slept at all the night before. His mind was too active and no amount of Naru's bubbly personality could calm him down. He loved Naru, but he loved Kushina too. He needed Kushina to be alive and with him.

Minato sighed before running a hand through his hair and getting ready to leave. He quickly left a note beside the bed, just to let Naru know he was gone already. He just couldn't bring himself to wake her up and he didn't want her to worry. He walked out of his house, but stopped outside to look at Naru's garden. The little flower patch had blossomed beautifully. Naru had been taking care of it after her sessions with Inoichi because it calmed her and helped her think. Minato couldn't help but feel proud at the beautiful display as he walked to the village gates. He had a separate mission than the other members of the team. They were simply looking for any survivors or leads to Iwa. Minato was looking for Kushina. He gave a half-hearted wave to his teammates before walking out of the village gates with them.

His eyes were trained unwavering on the road in front of him when he began to see something red in the distance. Minato quickly rubbed his eyes, thinking his mind was playing tricks on him. The closer he got though, the redder and larger the figure became. Minato felt his heart racing with disbelief as the figure took the shape of a person before slowly becoming more defined into the silhouette of a woman. One of Minato's teammates called his name, but he couldn't make out the words the chunin was saying. His mind was too focused on the woman walking down the road with her hands behind her head and a single backpack strapped to her back. Minato knew it could have been a trap or some type of genjutsu, but he didn't care. He started running towards the woman. He didn't care if it was just a random red haired woman, because there was the chance that it was Kushina. He raced forward and came to a quick stop as the red haired woman, his Kushina, stood there with raised eyebrows and hands on her hips.

"Blondie, what in Hell are you doing running from the gate like that? You completely left behind your teammates." She gave him her signature grin, "Did you really miss me that bad?"

Minato could feel the tears of relief collecting in his eyes as he ignored her squawking and engulfed her in a hug. She flailed her limbs for a few minutes before breaking down and returning the hug. Minato set her on the ground and gently cupped her face with both of his hands. "I'm so happy to see you."

Kushina's face was the perfect example of confusion as she let Minato drag her into a sweet kiss. His lips barely touching hers, almost like he couldn't believe she was there. He was holding her like she would disappear into smoke. Kushina normally wasn't one for public displays of affection, but there was something about the way his arms were enwrapped around her frame and the way she could feel his frantic heartbeat beneath her fingertips that soothed her body into letting him do as he pleased. She couldn't help but wonder why he was so frantic to see her. Yes, she had been gone a long time, but he knew she was coming back.

"Minato, this is a nice welcome back and all, but did something happen while I was gone? Everyone's okay right?"

Minato blinked in surprise before looking closely at Kushina's clothes and seeing their almost pristine condition. "Kushina, when did you leave Whirlpool?"

Kushina laughed, "My dad sent me to Wave two weeks ago for family business and I came directly from Wave instead of stopping back home. I sent the reports back via a messenger so I figured it would be okay to come directly back to Konoha."

Minato sighed deeply before taking Kushina's hand. "Let's go to the Hokage's office so we can straighten some things out."

Kushina wiggled her hand out of Minato's grasp. "Minato, what's going on?"

"Just come on and I'll tell you later."

Kushina glared at Minato. "The last time you said you would tell me later I discovered you had a kid. What are you hiding now?"

Minato frantically tried to look anywhere but Kushina's eyes as he tried to get out of answering the question. He failed when Kushina grabbed his jaw and pulled him face to look her in the eyes. Minato closed his eyes before deeply sighing again and stepping a little ways away from her. He turned back to the team that was waiting on the side of the road. "You guys can go ahead. My mission is complete." They nodded and took to the trees before disappearing out of sight. Minato looked back at Kushina. "Jiraiya-sensei and his informants have been watching Whirlpool for a while because Iwa seemed to be moving in that direction. They attacked Whirlpool a few days ago and it fell to Iwa." Kushina's face paled to a sickly pasty color that made her hair stand out even more. Her green eyes looked glazed over as she took the information in. Then Minato added the final blow. "Supposedly, there were no survivors."

Kushina's breathing became erratic and she started gasping for breath, then suddenly she stopped and stood straight up. She looked at Minato with dead, emotionless eyes before walking towards the village. "Minato, go tell the Hokage that I'm back. I'm going to go home and take a nap."

Minato made a grab for her arm, "Kushina wait…."

"No Minato, I'm going to go home. I can't think about this right now."

Minato watched as Kushina disappeared in a puff of smoke. He sighed before walking to the Hokage's office with the news that Kushina was back in Konoha.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I was having an amazing dream where I was the Hokage of Ramen Land and everyday was Free Ramen Day. I was just about to declare all vegetables illegal when I was snatched from the comforts of sleep by the sound of a bowl hitting the floor. Groaning, I got out of bed and walked into the kitchen to see Kushina staring in shock at a huge mess on the floor. It looked like she was trying to make cereal, but something happened and the breakfast ended up on the floor. She was staring at the mess before kneeling down and attempting to clean the split milk with a dishtowel. I noticed she was crying silently to herself.

It tore my heart up. This is my mother, the woman that gave me life. The woman I never got to know because of the Kyuubi. I walked over to her and kneeled beside her to help clean up the spilt milk. She stopped cleaning and looked up at me with wet eyes. I grinned at her and tried my best at making her laugh. "You know, there's no reason to cry over spilt milk."

She stared at me, grinning a little, before finally throwing her head back and laughing. The tears streamed down her cheeks but she laughed so hard and so loud that I feared I had broken her. She then did something I wasn't expecting, she pulled me into a hug and continued laughing until her laughter became short gasping sounds. I once more noticed she was crying into my hair as her body shook from the force of her grief. I pulled away slightly before looking at her.

"You found out about Whirlpool didn't you?"

She nodded, "Two weeks ago I was laughing with my father and mother as they told the old corny stories of my eldest brother's first diplomatic mission. I made so much fun of him because he embarrassed himself in front of the other delegates. Now they're all dead. I've lost everything in the span of five minutes."

I looked up into her eyes. They weren't watery anymore, but they burned with anger. I gently tried to turn her away from her anger. "At least you have those memories. At least you have your life."

"My life? If I would have been there I could have done something! I could have stopped it from happening or at least saved someone."

I shook my head, "You don't know that. You could have been there and done nothing. They could have taken you unaware and ended your life as well. We could have lost you too."

She stopped before sighing and picking the bowl up. She stood up and placed it on the counter. About the same time Dad walked in and immediately pulled her into a hug. I stopped and watched my parents. It seemed almost perfect to see them hugging each other in the kitchen. It was exactly how I used to imagine my family, only this time I actually knew what my parents looked like. I looked back at them before heading to the bedroom to get dressed; they needed to be alone so Dad could help Kushina.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

The team sent to Whirlpool returned to Konoha with reports of destruction and no survivors. Konoha hosted a memorial service for those lost at Whirlpool since they were such good allies. While the service was going on, Kushina grieved silently behind closed doors. Those who knew she was from Whirlpool sent their condolences and visited with her, but she refused to go to the memorial service. She needed to grieve on her own and away from people.

Minato helped her out a lot, considering he lost his own parents only a few years before. He knew exactly where she was coming from. He knew the loneliness and anger that came with their deaths. Sakumo helped too. The only family he had left was Kakashi; so he too knew the sting of death. He also had this amazing ability to choose the perfect desert to lift Kushina's spirits and make her smile.

Naru and Kakashi though, weren't really able to help much because the others were so determined to lend a hand. Naru and Kushina did have a couple of good talks where they became closer to each other and Naru shared some of her stories from her original timeline, modified slightly where she didn't give away that she was from the future. Slowly but surely, Kushina started going back out into the village, talking to other shinobi and civilians. She even took a couple of missions and really seemed to be getting her life back together, but she never forgot her anger at the Iwa shinobi.

Another great thing was that Kushina and Naru ended up finding a common interest in the garden. It was Naru that introduced Kushina to the calming feeling that gardening gave. At first Kushina was against the idea, but after seeing Naru so focused and peaceful while tending to her flowers, Kushina decided she needed something like that.

"Kushina? Are you ready?"

Kushina nodded before kneeling beside Naru. She looked at the gardening tools with a raised eyebrow before picking up the hoe. Naru showed her how to till the ground and plant the seeds. She also showed Kushina how to take care of the plants by weeding them.

One day, Kushina looked over at Naru and sighed. "My mom used to garden. She had the same passion for it that you do. My dad used to say that she would have been happier living in a hammock in her garden than in any of the rooms in the main house."

Naru turned and smiled softly. "Your mom sounds like a really cool lady."

Kushina nodded, "She was pretty cool. She raised four kids and still managed to smile and laugh amongst all the chaos. My brothers used to cause so much trouble when they were teenagers that she was constantly having headaches."

Naru grinned cheekily. "And I suppose you were the perfect little angel?"

"Of course, I was the perfect little angel! Can't you see my halo?" Naru laughed with Kushina. "What about your mom, Naru?"

Naru tensed slightly before answering with the best lie she could. "She did as best as she could. She was a free spirit and having a kid slowed her down. Not that she didn't love me, but she was trying to keep me healthy and with a roof over my head."

Kushina nodded sadly, "I hate that you lost her so young. If you ever need anything, you know I am here. I may be just your dad's girlfriend, but I can give pretty good advice."

"Thanks Kushina."

"Well, let's get these seeds in the ground!"

* * *

Minato was lightly sparring with Kakashi. They were working on his hand-to-hand combat and trying to strengthen his attacks. Minato couldn't help but feel proud of the progress his student was making. Minato managed to get behind Kakashi and pushed him onto the ground with his hands clasped behind his back. Kushina and Naru had practically ordered them out of the house so they could have their 'girl time.'

"Good job, Kakashi. You're improving greatly."

Kakashi smiled at him before massaging his arms. Minato stretched before walking over to sit beside Kakashi. He looked over at his student. "Hey Kakashi, has Naru mentioned anything about taking my last name? I'm thinking about signing the official papers to become her legal father."

Kakashi shook his head. "No, she's never mentioned it. I'm sure she wouldn't mind though."

"I just don't want her to feel like I'm asking her to give up her mother. I want her to remember her mom, but I also want her to take the last name that is rightfully hers. Do you think she would get mad if I changed it?"

Kakashi shrugged. "Why not just ask her?"

Minato sighed before shaking his head. "I can't do that. That would be pressuring her into making a decision and I don't want her decision to be made because of me."

"Fine then, I'll ask her."

Later that afternoon, Naru came home covered in dirt and with a smile on her face. Kakashi cornered her in the hallway before they went to bed to ask her if she would be willing to take on Minato's last name.

"Do you want to take on your father's name?"

Naru's eyes widened before she nodded her head furiously, "Of course I do!" She dropped her voice before checking for chakra signals. Once she found none, she continued. "Uzu may be a nice name, but it's not my name. I can't have Uzumaki, but I would love to have Namikaze. I didn't get the opportunity in the other timeline."

Kakashi nodded his head before reaching over and ruffling her hair. "Why not ask then? Why do you have to be difficult?"

Naru snorted before pushing his hand away. "I'm not difficult. I just don't want him to believe he has to let me take on his last name. I don't want to push him to anything. You promise you won't mention it to him?"

Kakashi grinned and crossed his fingers behind his back. "I won't mention a thing to him."

* * *

Kakashi and Naru went on to spend the next several days on a mission with Minato helping Fuijwara Hana move into the Nara Clan house. Naru grinned as she patted the little girl on the head and gave her a coupon for free ramen at the Ramen House. Takumi thanked the blonde haired girl before calling Hana inside. Shikaku had approved Hana's move and the once shunned little girl now found herself in a loving family. Naru was pleased with the arrangement and couldn't wait to see what Nara Hana would accomplish in her lifetime.

It wasn't until Sakumo received word his team would be deployed in a few of weeks that Kakashi and Naru decided to host a dinner party in memory of Whirlpool, since Kushina missed the memorial service. Naru had talked with Kushina a few days prior and learned the fiery redhead regretted not going to the service and wished she would have went instead of locking herself in the house with a bowl of ice cream and a durable training target.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

Naru's idea was a nice gesture to Kushina and showed that she really did care. I know it was eating Naru up inside to see Kushina so out of character. This was her mother and the one person she had dreamed about knowing. So of course I was willing to cook with Naru for Kushina and besides, who knew when we would get this rare opportunity again. We were being deployed in a matter of weeks and there was no guarantee that we would all make it through the war. The fact that my dad was alive was a relief, but also a constant worry. Some days I wondered if we didn't just prevent his death at home for it to happen on the battlefield.

I sighed before ignoring those depressing thoughts and watching Naru gather together the ingredients to make supper. We were making Ikameshi, which was simply squid stuffed with rice and placed in a sweet soy sauce soup. I'm not a huge fan of squid, but combined with the sweet soy sauce soup, it should be good. Naru had actually picked the dish out because it was one of Whirlpool's most famous dishes. The waters that surrounded the peninsula nation were teeming with squid of all sizes and species. It made getting the meat a whole lot easier since it was literally right in their backyard. We were also going to steam white rice with a side of skinless potatoes since they were in season. Dad even managed to conjure up chocolate cake, which surprised me because usually those didn't last long in our house. Overall it was going to be a good meal.

Naru clapped her hands together happily before turning to the opening between the kitchen and the living room. She placed her hands on her hips and looked at Dad and Sensei, who were sitting on the couch with Kushina. "Okay! I need you two to move the table out of the kitchen and rearrange the furniture in the living room. Then you're not allowed in the kitchen until everything is cooked and we're ready to eat."

Dad grinned as Sensei rolled his eyes at his daughter before doing exactly as she said. Kushina came to stand beside her and nudged Naru with her elbow. She bent down and whispered into Naru's ear, but loud enough so I could hear. "I knew teaching you the 'hands on the hip' pose and the 'authoritative voice' was a great idea. Look at what you've accomplished with just a few minutes of practice. Once I'm through with you, you'll have them whipped into shape."

Naru grinned as I tried to conceal my laughter. "Well Kushina, you did say it's all in the attitude."

Once Dad and Sensei finished moving the table and rearranging the furniture, Naru waved at them before shutting the door to close off the two rooms. I couldn't help but tilt my head and look at the difference in the room with the door closed. I had honestly forgotten that door closed because we always kept it open.

Naru walked over to the bowl containing the squid and peered over into the bowl. I knew from the disgusted look on her face that I would be handling the gutting portion of preparation. "Yeah Scarecrow, I'm leaving that to you. I'll go steam the rice and make the rice balls."

I nodded before washing my hands. "Don't forget about the soup. It has to be boiled with the squid in it."

Naru impatiently waved me off before grabbing a couple of pans and beginning to cook the rice. She stopped short and looked at the door. I turned and watched the door too. A very faint sound of whining was heard from the other side of the door. Naru walked over and grinned as Aki hurried in and took her place by the refrigerator. "Well, it looks like we've got us a helper Kakashi."

Aki barked happily before wagging her tail and pouncing on her toy bone. I looked over at Naru and decided that now would be a great time to get in some teasing. We hadn't had a good teasing session in a while and it was definitely needed. I poured the water out of the bowl before looking over my shoulder at Naru. "Well, at least Aki will be able stomach the squid guts. She's not going to go all 'girly' on me." I turned back around as I felt her chakra turn deadly and saw her back tense. I must be a glutton for punishment because I just had to add fuel to the fire. "Ya know, if you continue acting all 'girly' we'll have to get you a pink strap for your headband."

I turned to smile at her and was met with a face full of rice ball. I blinked the rice out of my eyes before wiping the rest off of my face the best I could. She grinned at me sweetly before innocently chewing on her fingernail. "Did I get rice on you? Well too bad."

I glared at her before picking up the bowl of flour we were going to use for the squid and throwing the flour at her. Her entire face was covered in the white powder and it fell off of her as she shook her head. I dropped the bowl as she opened those blue eyes that burned with mischief and grinned evilly. "This means war."

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo turned to look at the closed door as the suspicious sound of a bowl hitting the floor caught his ears. Kushina and Minato were too involved in their argument over the latest trend in Iwa's marching patterns to even notice the sound. In the back of Sakumo's mind he knew he should go make sure Naru and Kakashi weren't destroying the kitchen, but he ignored it. Instead, he turned to Kushina to agree with her point on the tactical warfare being too planned and not enough spontaneity.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I was covered in flour and Kakashi had rice in his hair. It was on! All at once we both went towards the counter for things to throw at each other. Kakashi grabbed the squid and stuffed the slimy creature down my shirt, but I got him with the bowl of soy sauce. The silver in his hair really complimented the soy sauce. Kakashi grabbed a few of the potatoes and mashed them in his hands before smearing the mush across my face. I grabbed one of the squids and slapped him across the face with the tentacles, luckily for me, Kakashi hadn't worn him mask and ended up with a face full of slime.

Aki whimpered pitifully from behind the fallen bowl and peeked over the top of it. She was covered in flour and had specks of rice and soy sauce splattered across her fur. Kakashi looked down at her, which gave me the perfect opportunity to run across the kitchen and grab the picture of water from the refrigerator. His eyes narrowed at me, "You wouldn't dare."

"Oh I dare."

I attempted to pour the water on top of his head, but he moved and grabbed the chocolate cake by the stove. I watched as he scooped some of the cake into his hand and grinned at me. "Want some cake?" He threw it across the room, but I ducked and it ended up landing on the cabinet with a dull bang.

I was across the room and scooping another glob of cake before Kakashi could recover. He ducked as the chocolate glob flew towards his head and landed on the refrigerator. Kakashi grabbed the sugar and walked menacingly towards me as I started laughing uncontrollably. He looked so silly covered in soy sauce, bits of chocolate cake and squid slime. He blinked as I told him, between gasps of air, to look at himself in the mirror. Kakashi started laughing too and as he pulled the mirror off the wall and let me see my reflection, it increased the laughter in the room.

I was a mess. I still had another glob of chocolate cake in my hand and reached over to smear it across his face. I couldn't stop laughing as I did it. Everything was finally breaking. The entire last few months seemed like they never even happened as I laughed harder than I had in a long time. All the frustration and fear was slipping away faster than the slimy tentacles of the squid. It wasn't until Kakashi reached over and gave me a matching streak of chocolate that Sakumo-sensei walked in with his eyebrows raised so far that they blended into his hairline.

"I'm not even going to ask what happened." He promptly turned around and walked right back out of the kitchen. Dad and Kushina peered in for a few minutes before shaking their heads and walking out again.

It wasn't until a few minutes later I heard Sensei. "That better not have been my chocolate cake or there will be a punishment."

Kakashi looked over at me and grinned. "Hey dad, will you come here for a minute?"

I watched with glee as Kakashi picked up the remains of the cake and waited for Sensei to walk back through the closed door. The door opened and the cake went flying. Unfortunately, it was Kushina that ended up with a face full of cake. Kakashi and I both stood still as she tensely wiped away the cake with both of her hands. Dad and Sensei were howling in the background with laughter. Kushina placed her hands on her hips and held up one finger. "I'm counting to one and then you're both dead."

We immediately looked at each other and disappeared from her sight.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo ended up having to track Kakashi and Naru down after they took off from the house. He secretly agreed with them, he would have disappeared too if Kushina had promised immediate death upon sight. After he found them and took them back home in order to clean up both the kitchen and themselves. They all decided it would be best to change the meal into a picnic and take it to the park. Sakumo, with the help of Kakashi and Naru, threw together some quick bentos and headed out with Kushina and Minato.

After they had finished eating, Naru tried to convince Kakashi to go play on the playground with her. Now Kakashi was still as stubborn and resistant as he was the last time he was there, but that didn't stop Naru. She was determined to get him on the playground.

"Come on Scarecrow, let's go swing."

Kakashi shook his head and crossed his arms. "No. I'm fine right here."

Kushina nudged her lover's student with her elbow. "Go on Kakashi, you're only young once. I mean honestly, do you even know how to have fun?"

Kakashi glared at the redheaded female. "Of course I know how to have fun."

Naru rolled her eyes and tapped her foot against the ground. "Need I remind you of the last time we were at the park? What was it that you said, oh yeah, 'umm wee'?"

Sakumo tried his hardest to conceal his laughter, but failed miserably. Minato joined in, grinning widely at his student. Kakashi quickly stood up. "Fine, I'm going to prove you wrong."

Sakumo raised a finger to stop him. "Kakashi, you're forgetting to remove all sharp, pointy and otherwise dangerous objects from your person."

The glare spoke volumes as Kakashi began removing his weapons and leaving them in a pile on the blanket. Sakumo rolled his eyes at his son before laying back and cloud watching. Kushina giggled as she watched Kakashi and Naru half race across the playground. She didn't know how much longer they would be that carefree, but she was glad she got to see it. Those two had really helped her with her loss. They had somehow wormed their way into her heart and become her new family with Sakumo being the laidback brother-figure and Kakashi being the annoying little nephew. Minato being the charming lover and Naru being the unexpected daughter. Kushina stopped as she thought about the blonde. However unexpected she was, she fit right in with the rest of them. Kushina was happy for the first time since her parents died. She didn't know why, but she felt strongly connected to Naru. Even if the relationship she had with Minato went sour, she knew she would always think of Naru as something close to a daughter. She looked towards Minato and watched as he laughed at Kakashi and Naru as they took turns on the monkey bars with laughable ease. She doubted they would go sour anytime soon. Like she said before, she kind of liked him.

A few more weeks passed and soon Sakumo found himself having to call the introductory meeting for the team he was leading while they were on the battlefield. It was also the day Kakashi and Naru would receive their dog tags. He had both sets sitting inside the top drawer of his dresser because he couldn't bring himself to look at them. He sometimes wondered what Nozomi would say about her seven-year-old having to go to war.

Dog tags were given differently in Konoha, usually only when they were at war. On regular missions, it was easier to either bring the body back or at least the headband. On the battlefield, a shinobi would be lucky to be able to snatch one of the tags from the body before dodging another kunai or jutsu. Kakashi and Naru were getting them because they had never been in a war before. Sakumo hoped he would never carry either one of those dog tags back, but he knew it was a huge possibility that he would.

He called the meeting for early Monday morning and dragged both Kakashi and Naru out of bed. They were still sore from Kushina's training payback regimen. All he could get out of either of them was cliffs, syrup and kittens. Sakumo mentally reminded himself to congratulate Kushina on gaining the title of 'Scariest Lady in Konoha' and then ask for tips.

Shortly after dawn, the entire team showed up at the designated training ground and waited for Sakumo's orders. He greeted the team before starting the briefing with introductions. Kakashi and Naru went first, both groaning as they willed their aching limbs to a standing position. They were a joint deal, both specializing with traps and defense. Kakashi though, was also listed as a strategist. Their sword skill was another check for them. Overall, their teammates were a little wary of having them on their team so young, but recognized their skill level. Soto Ronin was listed as the team's scout. His eyes were still in very high demand. Uchiha Ai was the team's short-range fighter. Her Sharingan was strong and she knew a fairly high amount of jutsu. Yamada Taro was the team's long-range fighter. He had chosen a strange device as his weapon of choice, the long bow. Sakumo actually got lucky with Ishikawa Sai. She was a medic-nin and not every team ended up with a qualified medic. A part of Sakumo wondered if this was the Third's way of saying 'sorry' for sending his two seven-year-olds into battle with him. Inoue Kenichi was the final member of the team and specialized in espionage. He could hold a full body henge for up to two days or longer if it was a simpler trait.

Once the introductions were done, Sakumo began giving out the information. "We're going to be stationed in Kusagakure for the majority of our time out there. Mostly we'll be protecting supply lines and serving as the reserve. We shouldn't be on the frontlines unless something goes wrong." Everyone nodded in understanding as Sakumo took the bag with the dog tags out of his pocket and tossed them to Kakashi and Naru. Naru caught the bag and peered inside. "Those are yours and Kakashi's dog tags. In the event that something happens those will be brought back instead of your bodies." It hurt to say that to his son and student, but he knew he had to treat them like any other member of the team. It was the only way.

Naru pulled out one set and handed it over to Kakashi, who looked at the metal tag and slipped it around his neck. Sakumo wanted to close his eyes and cringe away, but stopped before watching Naru look in confusion at her tags. She tilted her head to the side before looking back up at her sensei. "Sensei? My dog tags are wrong. My last name is Uzu not Namikaze."

Sakumo grinned at his student. "Minato wanted to surprise you. He's officially changed your last name to his, but if you want to keep your mother's last name then that's fine with him. We already have the other tags just in case you wanted to keep your original last name."

Naru shook her head before slipping the dog tags over her neck. She looked at them once more before looking back up. "Why did he do it now?"

Sakumo shrugged. "He said that there was no sense in hiding you anymore. Iwa already suspects you, so they're going to be after you regardless. He figured it would be an even bigger ego smasher for Iwa if you carried his last name."

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

After the meeting was over, Kakashi and I stuck around the training ground to try and work out our sore muscles. I fingered the metal tags around my neck before turning to look at Kakashi. "How did my dad know I wanted to take on his last name?"

Kakashi blushed slightly over the top of his mask. "A little birdie must have told him."

I laughed before walking over and pulling his mask down his cheek a little bit. I leaned over and kissed him firmly on the cheek before pulling away and admiring the nice shade of red his ears turned. He quickly looked away from me and suddenly became very interested in the oak tree beside us. I couldn't help but giggle and playfully bump him with my hip. He turned and chased me around the training ground and through the middle of the village.

As we ran, I couldn't help but notice the people that moved out of our way or waved after us. They were the reason we were going to war because we had to protect Konoha. I jumped over a small boy playing in the street. The children were the future and would one day carry on the Will of Fire. We protected them too. All of Konoha was in need of our protection because all of Konoha was connected to us by bonds. We came to the past, regardless of how strange and unusual, to change the future and make it a better place. We didn't know how much we had changed, but I could only hope it was the beginning of better things to come. Next week, we would be deployed and sent deep into Grass Country.

At this point, not even we knew what the future would hold.

* * *

 **Note of the releaser** : We reach the end of part 1. I will stop uploading for a while.


	30. Part 2: Chapter 1

**Part 2: Chapter 1**

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo watched the dark and foggy battlefield for any sign of silver or gold. He could only see the numerous unmoving bodies scattered across the terrain bearing both Konoha and Iwa forehead protectors. A small part of him rejoiced when he noticed more Iwa shinobi had fallen, but it was a hollow victory. For every one shinobi Iwa lost, they had three more to replace the fallen one. Konoha just didn't have that kind of numbers. For every one shinobi of theirs lost, they were lucky if they even had one to replace their fallen comrade. It was a grim situation. The frontlines had been driven back into the reserve lines some time during the night, leaving Sakumo's squad as part of the last ditch effort to regain control of the battle. His squad was for the most part unharmed, but they were exhausted. There was weariness in their eyes and forms that the little sleep they were getting could not cure. Sakumo had taken to pacing behind his squad because the anxiety of the situation was finally getting to him, but he refused to completely show his fear. He needed to stay strong for his team.

Sakumo had a very good reason to worry though, because on top of the almost hopeless situation presented before him, his squad was short two very important members. Kakashi and Naru had been sent out hours ago with a scroll holding his potential battle plans and a request for backup. He knew the chances of getting backup were zero to none, but it didn't hurt to ask. A sudden barrage of jutsu and weapons showered down on them as the enemy continued their relentless assault. Sakumo ordered his squad to crouch before peering over the top of the trench. The reserve trenches were the last barrier between Iwa and the medical tents. If Iwa broke through, it was over for Tsunade and her medics. Though Sakumo didn't doubt that Tsunade would fight the enemy tooth and nail to protect her patients and she would most likely win with her chakra enforced punches.

The White Fang peered across the declared 'no man's land' and nearly lost his head as a large shuriken was thrown from the opposing side. Ronin pulled him down just in time and stared at a clump of dirt in his hands with a grim expression. "This is stupid. We're just sitting here, waiting for something to happen because if we even attempt to get out of the trench, they're ready to take our heads off. Trench fighting sucks."

"I know Ronin, but this is the best we can do for now. At least until Kakashi and Naru get back with the new orders. Look at the bright side; they can't get out of their trenches either."

Ronin gave a humorless laugh before turning around and resting his back against the cool dirt and mud. Conditions in the trenches were horrible. The rain made everything muddy and if the wall of dirt that served as a divider for the bathroom broke, then all of that would mix in with the mud, blood and vomit. It made Ronin wish he were at home with his wife and young son. Ronin turned to watch his old friend sit across from him and close his eyes. At least he had it better than Sakumo. He would rather have his son miles away than on the battlefield with him.

Sakumo closed his eyes and sighed. He was beginning to think they were dead on the battlefield somewhere. He had sent the two nine-year-olds to headquarters with the scroll in the hopes that they would be able to maneuver themselves around any enemies and make it back alive. They had been gone way too long for Sakumo's liking and it was making him regret his decision. He opened his eyes and ran a hand through his dirty silver hair. "Where are you two?"

* * *

"How did we manage this?"

Kakashi shrugged before turning to look at his partner. She had grown a lot in the past two years. With the constant activity of being on the battlefield she had lost a lot of the baby fat she once had, giving her a leaner look. Her once short blonde hair had grown long. It completely bypassed its original length, but instead of cutting it again, she wore it braided down the middle of her back. Her blue eyes still held that same innocence she always had, but there was steeliness in her eyes that told of the horrors she had seen. "How do we manage anything we do?"

Naru shrugged. "Luck?"

Kakashi pointed to the 'no man's land' before him. "I don't think getting caught with 'no man's land' before us and Iwa behind us is luck."

Naru sighed, "It's completely crazy, but I bet we can race across and make it to the other side. We're shorter, so their aim should be off."

"Hopefully."

Naru grinned devilishly. "It's settled then, race ya to the other side Scarecrow."

Kakashi rolled his eyes. "Distraction first and then we'll go."

Naru grinned wider before reaching into her weapons pouch and pulling out her last eight, highly powerful explosives. She patted each of them for good luck before rearing back and tossing them in the middle of 'no man's land.' A very loud 'boom' was heard as the body littered area erupted in fire and smoke. "Distraction noted."

Kakashi shook his head before taking a deep breath to control his pounding heartbeat. "Let's go."

They ran. With all the chakra they could expend being pumped into their leg muscles and feet, they ran right down the middle of 'no man's land.' The Iwa side heated up with weapons and jutsu as the Konoha side cheered once they recognized the silver and gold blurs. Kakashi and Naru's run for their lives woke up the Konoha forces and revived their fighting spirit. Konoha shinobi began gathering what weapons they could and trying to clear Kakashi and Naru's way as they flew across the field. Iwa shinobi were getting hit by the weapons as they tried to concentrate on hitting Kakashi and Naru who were ducking and dodging left and right.

Kakashi and Naru were almost running side-by-side across the once green and lush field. Together they jumped over downed bodies and dodged weapons and jutsu. All the while trying their hardest to keep from slipping on the blood slicked ground because one wrong step and it was all over. Weapons and jutsu heated up once more and Kakashi found himself slowing down because Naru wasn't right beside him. He turned slightly and dodged another kunai before pulling her forward and practically tossing her into the trench before he fell beside her.

Both were breathing heavily as they fell to the ground and tried to catch their breath. Kakashi tore down his mask and clutched the dirt. He too had changed a lot in the last two years. He lost a lot of his baby fat, his face losing the chubby roundness it once had. His hair had gotten longer and brushed the back of his collar while his bangs would fall into his eyes if his forehead protector didn't hold them back. Kakashi never had the same spark of innocence that Naru possessed, but his eyes now held a hardness in them that only veteran shinobi possessed. His attitude had become blunt and sarcastic, but not to the point of rudeness. He was growing up fast on the battlefield. He hadn't grown much taller in the past two years, but with Naru having hit her first growth spurt early, he was now the shortest person on Sakumo's squad.

The Hyuuga in charge of the squad was over there instantly. Kakashi, still trying to catch his breath, pointed to Naru who handed him a scroll. Once they had reached headquarters, the Third entrusted them with a mission to deliver new orders to the lines. Hyuuga Hizashi didn't know whether to congratulate the two for making it across alive or yell at them for risking their lives like that when Konoha needed every able bodied shinobi. He decided for somewhere in the middle.

"That was the most idiotic thing I've ever seen."

Naru nodded and finally caught her breath enough to speak. "Sure was, but we didn't die so stop complaining."

Kakashi managed to stifle down his laughter as he watched the Hyuuga snarl and walk away. He stood up and pulled Naru to her feet.

"Fishcake, that really was the most idiotic thing we could have ever done. We could have died."

Naru grinned and the shinobi around her couldn't help but return a similar one. "Yeah, but it was fun, though."

All of a sudden a very irate and shaking blond man appeared in the trench. Minato pinched the bridge of his nose to try and calm down his headache. He couldn't believe what he just witnessed, his daughter and student racing across a practical graveyard without any regard for their own lives. It made him feel hysterical to think about what they just did. The adventurous part of him was proud they made it across without even getting so much as a scratch. The father part of him, though, completely freaked when he heard his daughter say it was 'fun.' Minato twitched. "Fun? You call running across seventy-five yards of 'dead man's zone' fun! Have you no decency? You could have been killed or worse!"

Kakashi grinned at his Sensei. "There's something worse than immediate death?"

Minato turned angry eyes on his student. "Don't even start with me Hatake; you just wait until your father hears about this."

Kakashi and Naru both looked at each other before answering in perfect unison. "Yes Mom."

Minato twitched a final time before growling and grabbing both of them by the back of their shirts. Naru winked at Kakashi as Minato practically dragged them to Sakumo. He dumped them on the ground at Sakumo's feet, causing dirt and dust to fly up around them. Naru coughed the dust out of her lungs as Minato began telling Sakumo what they did using loud words and lots of hand movements. Just to tick him off, Sakumo waved at the kids. "Have fun?"

They both nodded, "Yep."

Minato hissed at Sakumo, "Don't encourage them!"

Ronin couldn't help but laugh as Minato glared at the two children and threatened them if they ever tried something like that again. Another barrage of weapons rained down on the Konoha shinobi, causing everyone to take cover. Minato hurried back to his post in the trench as the 'all clear' was given. When the dust finally settled, Kakashi and Naru presented Sakumo with a dusty scroll and greeted him for the first time in several hours.

"Miss us?"

Sakumo finally allowed himself to breathe a sigh of relief. He ruffled both sets of dusty heads before admitting he had gotten a little worried because they were gone so long. "I was beginning to worry."

Naru flashed her Sensei a bright smile. "You shouldn't have worried, there was no way they were going to catch us."

Kakashi nodded in agreement. "Ambush yes, but catch? No."

Sakumo groaned, "How many? And where? I thought they had cleared Iwa out of everywhere from Hachi Ravine to the grasslands."

Hachi Ravine was Konoha's first victory in Kusagakure; Jiraiya with the help of Tsunade cleared Iwa out nearly two years ago. Jiraiya's toads scouted out the forces for weeks before discovering the exact locations of their base camps located at the top of the ravine and one at the bottom. With Tsunade's powerful punches and kicks, she was able to cause a huge landslide, which killed many that resided in the bottom of the ravine. Those that survived were met with Konoha forces at both of the lower openings. It was a bloodbath. Jiraiya took care of the base on top of the ravine. He and fifty shinobi descended on the camp in the dead of night, taking no survivors. Iwa hadn't tried to retake Hachi Ravine since they lost it. It worried Sakumo to think Iwa was close to the ravine once more.

Naru counted out on her fingers. "I would say about five. We were coming west from headquarters and we had to make a quick decision. Either go through the lower grasslands or cut through the ravine. The ravine seemed quicker, which of course ended up not being true."

Kakashi shook his head, "You forgot about the sixth one below the ravine. Sneaky bastard, almost caught us."

Sakumo sighed, "Language Kakashi, language."

Kakashi playfully rolled his eyes at Naru, who giggled as he continued. "Anyway, they chased us to the ravine in an attempt to drive us over the edge or set us up for the sixth shinobi. They made a mistake, though. After they realized who we were and tried to convince their captain to capture us alive, something about huge bounties and stuff like that. While they were arguing, Naru managed to pull out her exploding tags and the rest is history."

Sakumo's eyes flicked to Ronin as he opened the scroll and began to read. Sakumo showed the newest orders to him and watched as the man's smudged face set into a scowl. Something wasn't right. The newest orders were potentially deadly and Sakumo didn't know if he could give them out. "Kakashi, Naru, get some sleep."

Both blinked rapidly before turning to the man. Naru raised an eyebrow. "You expect us to sleep with the world crashing down around our heads?"

Sakumo nodded, "Now. Both of you." The last part was directed more towards Kakashi. His son wasn't sleeping like he used to. With a little groaning and a slight sigh from Kakashi, both tried to ease into an uneasy sleep on a hard and dusty ground. Somehow in the midst of the sounds of war, Kakashi and Naru both drifted into sleep. Exhausted from their run.

Sakumo turned to Ronin. "Let's go see Minato."

They quickly ducked between the different trenches before stopping at Minato's post. Minato was situated just a few yards from Sakumo and his squad. It was close enough for travel between them to not be dangerous. Part of that was because Sakumo and Minato both agreed that Kakashi and Naru should be able to move freely between the two of them. Minato was talking with Inuzuka Jiro, Sakumo's old teammate, when they walked over.

"Minato, can we borrow you for a minute?"

Minato nodded and led the two other men to an almost deserted section of the trench. The stink of death and decay hung heavily in the area, but if they wanted privacy they had to ignore the stomach turning smell. After they all sat down Sakumo pulled the scroll out and handed it to Minato. The man's eyes nearly bulged out of his head. "He really wants them to do this?"

Sakumo nodded, "Unfortunately, we can't ignore a direct order from the Hokage. It's dangerous, but if they succeed, then we could win this battle."

"And if they don't?"

Ronin sighed before fingering the photo in his chunin vest pocket. "Then we die here today and never see our families again."

As the men lapsed into silence, thinking over the possibility of never returning to Konoha, the sounds of the battlefield became a low background noise. Each man's thoughts were solely focused on the orders from the Hokage and how they affected the young chunin sleeping a few feet away.

The battlefield Konoha and Iwa chose to clash over was within two miles of an old mining town. The grounds used to be rich in zinc, which the residents of the town used in their weapons to increase their conductivity of chakra. As the villagers exhausted the zinc supplies close to their town, they started digging tunnels all throughout the countryside in the hopes of finding more of the money making resource. Nearly all of Kusagakure was covered with these tunnels from this little mining town. They succeeded for a while, until the tunnels became unstable and the miners refused to risk their lives for the zinc. The mining town eventually went bankrupt and slowly decayed as its villagers moved on to find jobs.

The town no longer stood, but the mines still slumbered beneath the ground and that was what the scroll was about. All of the tunnel entrances and exits had long since collapsed leaving only a few small openings. An adult would never be able to fit into the tunnels, but a child could. According to the old maps found by one of the Hokage's spies, the tunnels were heavily concentrated on the Iwa side of the field. Konoha's side was situated above the outer, unfinished tunnels. The miners quit working before they could finish the tunnels underneath Konoha's feet.

His plan was a long shot because the Hokage didn't know the condition of the tunnels, nor did he know if Iwa already knew about them. The plan was for Kakashi and Naru to scout out the tunnels, infiltrate and find multiple exits. Sarutobi wanted them to set explosives underneath the Iwa shinobi to serve as a distraction so the remaining Konoha shinobi could try their last desperate push to win the battle or at least gain control of the battlefield. The Hokage had affectionately entitled the mission as 'Tunnel Rats.' The danger in the mission was high; if Kakashi or Naru somehow hit the wrong support then the entire tunnel could collapse onto them. If Iwa had already taken up residence in the tunnels and the two were caught, then it was a great chance they would never make it out. Even if everything went right and they somehow managed to get the explosives set and ready, if they got turned around in the tunnels they could easily lose their lives.

The plus side was simple. If they managed to succeed here with these tunnels then they could easily retry a similar plan with the hundreds of other tunnels scattered throughout the land. Konoha would have an 'Ace up the sleeve' over Iwa. The explosions below the ground would hopefully collapse the ground above or simply serve as a distraction for the other Konoha forces. As soon as the explosions started that was Sakumo and the other captain's cue to hit Iwa heavy and hard. They would leave behind trench fighting, cross 'no man's land,' and fight with Iwa behind their own lines. All they had to do was get Kakashi and Naru close enough to find the small entrances without drawing suspicion to what they were doing. It was tricky, but Sakumo believed deep down that they could do it.

"Let them sleep a little while longer. We'll wake them in thirty minutes."

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

Dad woke us up with a nice cardboard tasting ration bar and a cup of water. I always made sure to not look at the color of the water because it was usually not clear. The worst color I saw was back when we were stationed near the border of Iwa. It was purified and okay to drink, but the color would turn your stomach if you let it get to you. I missed Konoha food and water. I missed home.

"After you two finish eating, we've got a mission for you."

Naru chewed on her ration bar before looking over at me in question. I shrugged before gulping down the rest of my water. Naru shoved the rest of the ration bar into her pocket when Dad wasn't watching. As I have mentioned before, Dad has this amazing ability to switch personalities between Hatake Sakumo and the White Fang. On the battlefield, that line was blurred and his two egos somehow merged together. Multiple times he went from deadly serious and dangerous to the laughing and joking man I called 'dad.' Dad had been watching me and Naru very carefully lately. We both lost weight from a combination of an inadequate diet and from just being active. Fighting in a war kept us busy and our young bodies easily burned through calories and fat. Our metabolisms were in high gear, which of course led to us gaining little weight.

We were both small for our ages because of that. We were still growing taller, though Naru did hit her first growth spurt making her taller than me, but we weren't gaining weight. Which was worrying Dad. He knew we sometimes would only eat a little bit of the ration bars because they were simply disgusting. I know they say 'beggars can't be choosers,' but no one willingly eats a ration bar. Naru and I simply made due until the supply lines were able to come in and we could get other food. Our choices were sometimes limited to different foods that were easily cooked with heated water, like oatmeal, but anything was better than ration bars. Unfortunately for the last few weeks the supply lines haven't been able to get to our location. Everyone was forced to either eat the ration bars or find what little wildlife there was left in the countryside. Even those numbers were exhausted. I hadn't seen a squirrel or rabbit in days.

Besides our obvious lack of nutrition and threat of certain death daily, we were doing okay. It had taken a while for Naru to get used to the bloodshed and many a night she didn't sleep at all because of her memories of the battles we had been in. I myself hadn't taken as well as I did the first time to being in battle. Of course, that could be because something was different about the Iwa shinobi this time around. They seemed almost desperate when fighting and some were just plain animalistic in battle. I don't know if this was somehow in connection with our time traveling or if my memory of the early years of the war was just faded. All I knew was that we were baptized early into the routine of war, a baptism of blood and gore. Our first official battle of the war was a bloodbath. Iwa shinobi were everywhere and we just didn't have enough time to prepare for them or call in backup. It began as a hopeless situation and ended with exhaustion and grief.

 _Flashback…_

 _Originally, Sakumo's squad was strictly assigned to the reserve lines and for guard detail on the supply lines. The Hokage had a soft spot for Kakashi and Naru, them being so young, and refused to send them into the heat of the battle. Fate wasn't as favorable or kind. The War Council called for the White Fang to battle against Iwa and needed his tracking skills. Sakumo was a tracker and scout. They needed him to sniff out the camps of the enemies. He was simply the best at what he did and the War Council wanted him doing his job, regardless of who was on his squad. After much debate, the Hokage was forced to relent his original orders for Sakumo's squad. He didn't lose the battle though. In return for Sakumo's squad being sent to the frontlines, Minato's squad would be moved from their position to serve as backup for Sakumo's. The War Council didn't fully agree with the Hokage, but compromised willingly. They had what they wanted nothing else mattered._

 _With a heavy heart, the Hokage sent the orders to Sakumo's squad for them to move from the supply lines to Iwa's eastern border. They were being marched into one of the hottest parts of the war where Iwa was trying to keep Konoha away from getting into their borders and from gaining control of the Ishi River. The eastern border was really the worst place to attempt an infiltration because it was mostly mountains and cliffs. The only thing Konoha would accomplish by winning was gaining control of the river that snaked parallel to the eastern border. Which would have given Konoha another way to move their supplies and cut off Iwagakure supplies._

 _Sakumo didn't sleep well the entire march to Ishi Valley where the Konoha forces were camped. Team White Fang was immediately stationed on the bank of the Ishi and given their orders to scout out the enemy. Sakumo sent Ronin across the old wooden bridge to scout the other side of the river with Ai for support. He then stationed Taro on a cliff overlooking the river with his long bow. Sai stayed with Sakumo on the bank of the river as Kakashi and Naru patiently waited for Sakumo's orders. He was shamefully avoiding giving them their orders because he wanted to hold on a little bit longer before throwing them into the battle. He hoped Ronin would come back with an 'all clear' report. As Ronin came back with a report that three squads were moving towards them Sakumo knew he could no longer hold off on assigning them._

 _He placed them on the right flank of the river where they would be able to handle the wooden bridge. The current was too rough for swimming across and still too dangerous to walk across using chakra. The only way to cross would be the bridge. If the enemy started coming across the bridge, it was Kakashi and Naru's job to destroy it._

 _The Iwa forces finally appeared on the opposite side of the river and Sakumo couldn't shake off the feeling that something was wrong. His eyes trained on the cliffs overlooking the other side before he saw the nearly invisible chakra strings. A few seconds later Taro unleashed a single arrow from his spot in the cliffs behind Sakumo. The arrow was a specially made arrow equipped with pockets of Taro's chakra. The random bursts of chakra would dispel any genjutsu and from Ai's Sharingan blazing in the afternoon sun, they were able to guess some type of genjutsu was up. All of them brought their hands together in the ram seal and pushed chakra into the air around them to undo the genjutsu placed on the river and land._

 _Sakumo felt his heart drop as the genjutsu lifted to reveal several other bridges leading across the river and Iwa shinobi approaching closer to their positions. There wasn't enough time to call for backup, nor was there enough time to retreat without leading the enemy to their camp. Sakumo made a decision right there to stand and fight the onslaught coming towards them. He quickly called Kakashi and Naru over to him and pointed to the katanas strapped to their backs. One look was all they needed to know this was the time to fight for their lives and survive._

 _Naru's hand shook slightly as she reached behind her and pulled Tsukiakari out of its sheath. Then, almost like a calm took over her, Naru's hand stilled and tightened around the katana. She bit her lip before turning and giving Kakashi a foxy grin. Kakashi had removed Hanshou from its sheath and caught Naru's grin, he returned one back to her. They both knew this battle was serious, but they couldn't let it scare them. Naru held out her closed fist towards Kakashi and grinned wider as he bumped his fist against hers. The unspoken 'don't die' could plainly be seen in their eyes as they turned to stare at their enemies._

 _All of a sudden the Iwa shinobi were everywhere. Kunai and shuriken crowded the sky and littered the ground as Kakashi and Naru began their assault. Everything is lost during this time. Kakashi forgets his father is on the battlefield with him. Naru forgets the others are there. The only thing that matters to them is each other in that moment, because if one of them dies then the future is bleak._

 _Kakashi slashes wildly as the other shinobi seem surprised to see such a young child on the battlefield. Their surprise is Kakashi's ticket to surviving. He lets them stand in shock for a few seconds before driving his katana home into their kidneys or intestines because he isn't tall enough to reach their hearts or heads. The angle he has to give the killing blows is off and the spray of blood always manages to catch him no matter how fast he dodges away. Naru is never far from his side the entire battle. She dances around fallen shinobi with the grace of a ballerina only stopping to cut down the shinobi in her path. Her eyes are nearly completely glazed over as she detaches herself from the situation in order to get the job done. She too is not tall enough to deliver killing blows above the abdominal region. Her strikes are limited to the intestines and if she gets right underneath the shinobi, she can drive her katana upwards into the lungs. That position is dangerous, though, because the dying body could fall and crush her._

 _By the end of the battle, the Iwa shinobi hadn't broken through, but Sakumo's team is exhausted. While Kakashi and Naru were battling so were the adults. All three squads of the Iwa shinobi are decimated with nothing but bodies and broken weapons to attest for their existence. Kakashi and Naru are both drenched in blood. Sakumo finds that he can't even look at his son because the pale skin shines brightly between the streaks of red blood and gore. Ronin wants to cry because all he can think of is his young son standing in Kakashi and Naru's spot with similar bloody clothes and hair. Naru's eyes are still glazed over, but she turns them to her blood splashed hands and tries wiping them on her pants furiously. Kakashi is starting to feel sick, but he swallows down his stomach and shoots a look towards the adults. They don't seem to know how to handle the situation because they don't know how to handle children. This is the first time for most of their team to work with children; his dad though, had no excuse. Kakashi then noticed his dad was struggling with not running over to coddle them. He's actually treating them like subordinates._

 _Kakashi gently took Naru's hand and pulled her away from the group to the waterside. She's bitten her lip into a bloody mess, but he doesn't pay that any attention. He reached over and removed her shoes before sticking her feet into the water. It woke Naru up and she blinked the film from her eyes. Kakashi reached down into the water and began washing off the blood from his clothes and skin. He even sticks his head into the water to wash away what blood he could. Naru followed his example and managed to remove most of the gore from her body._

 _Kakashi pulled his mask down around his neck and gently smiled at Naru. He still has that sick feeling in his stomach and it's coating his tongue now, but he ignores it again. The adults are further away from them trying to check the bodies for any clues and giving the youngest members of their group a chance to clean up. Naru attempted a wobbly smile before launching herself forward and burying her face into Kakashi's chest. Even though he can taste the bile in the back of his throat, Kakashi leans into the embrace and returns one of his own._

 _Unbeknownst to Kakashi and Naru, Sakumo watched his son and student. In their few moments of privacy Kakashi lets Naru rest her head against his leg. They would have to go back in a few short minutes, but for now, this is what they needed. Kakashi reached down and began treading his fingers through Naru's drying hair. The blood is gone, but it's still sticky and stuck together. He gently begins un-sticking the strands. Sakumo finds it strange because in that moment Kakashi looks years older. Adult-like and mature. Naru seems like his student in so many ways._

 _Team Sakumo returned to the camp a few hours later after clearing away the dead and destroying the bridges. Kakashi and Naru were both quiet on the return trip, their thoughts too worked up around the outcome of their first 'real' battle._

 _End Flashback_ …

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I turned to look at Kakashi and noticed the faraway look in his eyes that he always got when he was remembering the battle of Ishi River. Konoha wasn't able to conquer the entire river, but we still currently control the section we fought at. Not enough for shipping supplies, but it's a great ego booster. I've gotten a lot better at handling death and killing since that first battle. It never stopped stinging though. The day it did would be the day I lose all emotions and became something close to an animal.

We followed after Sakumo-sensei until he led us to the back of the trenches that were used as a safe exit to the trenches. Our scouts and supplies were carried to and from the trenches using the openings in the back. It was strangely deserted with only Ronin and Dad standing by the exits. Sensei sighed deeply before handing us a scroll and a map.

"Your mission is to infiltrate the underground mines using this map. For now we just need you two to find the other entrances and determine if the tunnels are usable. Ronin will accompany you both there and once you come back with the information we need, he'll be the one that supplies you with the explosives. He'll then leave and return here for the final assault. Once the explosives are in place and ready to detonate, you two need to get out of there as soon as you can and meet us at the rendezvous point."

Kakashi tilted his head. "You don't want us to join the fray afterwards?"

Sensei shook his head, "If you two succeed here then a similar plan will be set into motion for the rest of the war. Right now you two are the only ones here that can fit in the little spaces that lead into the mines. This mission is dangerous, but I know you two can do it." Sensei looked at both of us and grinned. "Good luck. Now get going."

We nodded and took off after Ronin. The first entrance on the map was nearly two miles away from the trenches. According to the map, it used to be the main entrance to the mines, but there was no telling what condition the entrance was in. In fact, when we found the entrance, there wasn't anything left above ground that even signified an entrance used to stand there. From the looks of the rumble around the underground cavern, there was either a landslide or the entrance supports collapsed in on itself. Ronin sighed before kicking a rock with the toe of his sandal. "Sakumo is gathering whatever explosives we have left for you two. Once you give the 'okay' I'll be traveling back and forth between here and there. I wish you two the best of luck. Just don't die."

Kakashi rolled his eyes at Ronin's order as I grinned and promised we wouldn't. He backed away from the rubble and watched us with a piercing gaze as Kakashi began moving boulders and rocks around. I looked on the map and knew the entrance had to be huge at one time. I fell in beside Kakashi and began moving rocks until we both smelled the musky sent of old air. I grinned and began moving rocks faster until we had a hole large enough for us to fit into. Kakashi whistled slightly as he looked into the darkness before us. I picked up a rock and dropped it into the darkness and was very quickly rewarded with a 'thud'

"Looks like it isn't that far of a drop Kakashi."

He nodded before sitting on the edge of the opening and jumping into the blackness. I heard him hit the ground softly and soon a light appeared in the darkness. I made out Kakashi's form holding the light and he waved me down. I gave Ronin a final wave before disappearing into the hole with Kakashi. It was dark and dank in the tunnel. It had a very off smell that was making my eyes water. Kakashi though, didn't seem affected by it. I could only describe it as rotting skin and old vomit. The thought of the combination made me gag.

"How does this smell not bother you?"

Kakashi shrugged before pointing to his mask. "I can't smell a thing with this mask on. Is it bad?"

I nodded before realizing he couldn't see me. "Yeah, it's horrible."

Kakashi began reaching into his pouch and pulled out a black mask. He handed it to me. "Here, this should help."

"Thanks." I pulled the mask on and immediately the smell disappeared and I could breathe. The mask did feel strange on my face, but not to the point of suffocating. I winked at Kakashi and finally took a close look at the light in his hand. He had tied a strip of his shirt to a stick and lit it on fire. I followed his example and made my own light using a small Katon jutsu.

Kakashi was patiently waiting for me the entire time. I nodded and checked the map before pointing forward. "Let's go this way."

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Kakashi and Naru walked quietly forward following the map and hoping they didn't get turned around in the tunnel somewhere. For now, the navigation was easy. There was only the main tunnel they were traveling through, but they both knew the tunnel would start branching soon. All of a sudden they hit a dead end. The rest of the main tunnel had collapsed leaving them with two branch tunnels going in opposite directions. Naru scrunched up her nose in thought as she brought her light down to get a better look at the map. Kakashi walked over to look with her.

"Which way? Left or right?"

Naru chewed on her bottom lip before ignoring Kakashi's question and tracing the tunnel route with her finger. The main tunnel would have been the better choice for continuing, but seeing as it was out of commission, they would have to make do with the others. The right tunnel headed too far north, but the left tunnel would eventually bring them to Iwa's side.

"Left, we've got to go left."

Kakashi nodded and left they headed. The left tunnel was slightly smaller than the main tunnel, but Kakashi and Naru could still comfortably move around. A few more tunnel changes and the two chunin found themselves hearing the faint thunder of the battle ahead of them. Kakashi stopped as bits of rock and dust fell from the ceiling of the tunnel. Naru looked around and found lanterns along the walls. Once lit, the lanterns gave off a light that shone brightly in the darkness. Kakashi blew out his makeshift lantern and propped it against the wall. Together they sat down and began planning out their assault.

"We're close enough that we need to actually come up with a plan before we look for other exits. Naru, let me see the map." Naru handed Kakashi the map and he spread it out in front of them. "Off of this tunnel we have five other branch tunnels. It looks like only three lead to Iwa's side of the field. If we can scout further into the tunnels and begin marking the spots for the explosives then all we would have to do it set them and get out of here."

Naru nodded and pointed to one of the tunnels. "This one here looks like it runs right underneath the middle of their line. We should concentrate a lot of explosives right there so we can take a good chunk out of the middle. Plus, if the middle is being attacked, the front is more likely to turn around to see what's happening. Which would give our forces enough time to attack. Then we could also put explosives in the other two tunnels just in case the ground in the middle tunnel is thick and nothing happens."

"We run that chance anyway. I say where we are at now should be our base of operations. It's easy to get back to the main entrance and we are still close enough to the battling. The area is also lighted enough for you to wire together the explosives correctly."

Naru nodded, "I agree. Come on, _Scarecrow_ , let's go see what we can find."

Kakashi grinned at her from underneath his mask. "Whatever you say, _Fishcake_."

The two began searching the tunnels starting with the outer tunnels that ran towards the front of Iwa's line and going to the one that ran along the back. The middle tunnel would be last because that one was the most important for now. The first tunnel was a tiny bit scary. Half of the tunnel had collapsed, leaving a few small places where light from above was able to creep through. Kakashi was afraid to touch the walls for fear that the entire thing would go. Naru on the other hand, was curious as to what was above her head. She could hear the amplified sounds from above, but she wanted to know how far into Iwa's side they were. Ignoring Kakashi's warning glance, she gently applied chakra to her feet and walked up the wall to look through one of the holes.

Naru's blue eye peered through the hole and she had to bite her tongue to not cry out at what she saw. Kakashi's eyes widened as he saw Naru clamp her hand over her mouth and release the chakra from her feet to land on the ground. They didn't talk out loud anymore because they didn't want a stray word to ruin their mission. Naru knew this couldn't wait though. She pulled Kakashi's ear close and whispered her findings.

"Iwa is right above us. I was looking into a trench."

Kakashi's eyes widened before walking over to the little hole that allowed light to pour into the cavern. A few particles of dust and rock fell from the ceiling as the men above them moved around. Kakashi took out a long piece of rope and cut off a few inches from the length. The rope was their indicator as to where they were going to put the explosives. Naru took the length of the rope from Kakashi and tied it onto a root that stuck out from the wall. Their first tunnel was a success, as was the second. The second tunnel placed them towards the back of the Iwa forces though, but it still had the same holes. These shinobi were arrogant and not even fighting with the front lines. They were too busy passing the time with games and idle chatter. They all believed they had this battle won. Naru grinned before placing another piece of rope in the tunnel. Oh how wrong those shinobi were.

The final tunnel was actually the continuation of the main tunnel. Apparently the whole thing wasn't collapsed, just the part Kakashi and Naru needed to get through. They had scouted out nearly everything except the middle tunnel and a few exits. They returned back to their base of operations so they could communicate. Kakashi's eyes were wild with excitement.

"Naru, we're so close to them!"

Naru grinned at him, but with Kakashi's mask still around her face, it didn't have the same mischievous affect. "I say we find a couple of exits and then finish the middle tunnel. Since it is the main tunnel, we should be able to move those rocks enough to make it a straight shot out of here."

Kakashi shook his head, "I say we let the main tunnel stand as is. If we mess with something and it all comes down then we're screwed. Let's just find these exits and get out of here."

Naru nodded and they began searching the surrounding tunnels. Their exits needed to be away from the blast zone so they could get out safely. Also, they didn't need to meet up with any of the Iwa shinobi still fighting. They stayed together the entire time they searched because they both feared what would happen they were discovered separately.

It didn't take long for them to find a few exits away from the battle site and after Kakashi actually exited to make sure everything was clear, they were good to go. They returned to the middle tunnel and scoped it out only to discover the supports were extremely weak. The combination of age and weight from above was taking a toll on the supports and causing them to splinter and crack. If all of the Iwa shinobi were to jump up and down at the same time, the entire middle tunnel would collapse. Kakashi gently touched one of the supports and the wood cracked even more. He shot Naru a look, which she returned with a nod. They quickly turned and sprinted out of the tunnel and back to Ronin.

Once Kakashi and Naru made it back onto ground level, Ronin was sent back to the trenches to retrieve any explosives Sakumo had managed to dig up. Many shinobi had explosive tags because those weren't as easily thrown as bombs and dynamite. The explosive tags could only be thrown attached to kunai and weapons like kunai were in short supply. Since the supply convoys hadn't been able to get to the shinobi, they had to make do with what they had.

Ronin was able to gather many exploding tags, a hand full of bombs and, strangely enough, two bags of exploding powder. Ronin figured Naru would get a kick out of the exploding powder because it was something not usually used.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

The exploding powder was amazing! I know what I'm requesting next time Sensei sends out for supplies. Kakashi thought I was weird for making a huge deal out of the exploding powder, but if my plan worked then weird or not, I was going to collapse that tunnel. We wished Ronin 'good luck' as he headed back to the trenches to wait for the signal.

"What's the plan, Fishcake?"

I grinned back at Kakashi, his mask was pooled around my neck for now. "It's very simple. We go in and plant the explosives and watch the fireworks begin."

Kakashi shrugged, "Sounds like a plan to me."

I pulled the mask back around my face and gave Kakashi a 'thumbs up.' "Let's get this done."

We entered back into the main entrance and into our tunnel that served as our base of operations. There we divided the exploding tags up evenly before adding the bombs to the piles that were going to go into the first and last tunnel. The middle tunnel was so feeble that it wasn't going to take much to collapse it. The exploding powder came in afterwards. Once the first bombs went off, we were going to light the exploding powder using a clone. The exploding powder was going to shut off the three tunnels we were using from the other ones so in case Iwa decided to investigate the ground, they wouldn't find the other tunnels. Konoha would still have their secret weapon.

This was going to be the only time Kakashi and I was going to separate from each other. We needed to get the explosives down as soon as possible so we could let them go. Kakashi took his set of explosives to the third tunnel and began setting up; I was going to do the first tunnel and what I could of the middle before he got through.

Setting the tags wasn't a tough job. If the exploding tags were put on the wall supports then the tunnel ceiling would automatically collapse once the explosions went off. I quickly set the exploding tags on some of the supports before taking the bombs and digging them into the ceiling. Hopefully the explosions from the tags would ignite the bombs. I doubled back to our base of operations and began pouring the explosive powder at the entrances. Once that was done, I picked up the remaining tags and headed to the middle tunnel. Our job was almost complete, but a muffled rumble caught my attention.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

The final tunnel was easy to wire. Put the explosives on places that will weaken the roof and you're good. Nothing too hard. Though I didn't expect part of the ceiling to cave in while I was getting ready to head into the tunnel. My entire body froze as two feet appeared from the ceiling. I could hear the shouting of the shinobi above as they laughed at whoever fell through.

"Geez, lose some weight why don't ya."

"Shut up! I am a perfect weight, it's just weak ground."

"I'll say, look it's a cave or something. Let's check it out."

My heart beat hard against my ears. The shinobi were having problems digging out a hole big enough for them to get into so I took the time to quickly place the tags sloppily around what I could reach and ran out of the tunnel. I could feel Naru in the middle tunnel. I sprinted into there and ran right into her.

"What's going on?"

I shook my head quickly to try and get her to calm down. "Iwa shinobi somehow found a weak spot in the ground and fell through. We've got to go now. They're trying to get into the third tunnel."

"Damn! Let's go."

We quickly placed the remaining exploding tags around the middle tunnel. The supports were what we focused most of our energy on because they were weak enough to go without the slightest resistance. I took a bag of the powder from Naru and stealthily walked back to the third tunnel. The Iwa shinobi had finally made a hole big enough to stick their heads through. I was just out of their sight as I quietly poured the black powder at the entrance of the tunnel.

Naru appeared beside me and waved for me to go with her. The final tags had been set and all we needed to do now was make the clones so they could light the exploding powder. We moved into one of the side tunnels and produced three clones each just as the sound of feet hitting the ground echoed through the tunnels. I took a deep breath before looking at Naru.

"It's now or never."

She nodded and sent her clones into the main tunnel to wait for their job. The sounds of the shinobi were getting closer and we knew we had to activate the tags then or they would discover us. We were lucky enough to be in the tunnel with one of our scouted out exits. If we activated the tags then we should have no trouble getting out. Naru brought her hands together in the sign needed to release the chakra to activate the exploding tags. I followed her example.

Together we released the exploding tags and began running. Explosions rang out behind us as screams filled the tunnels. It was a horrifying sound and I'm sure the tunnels reeked of burning flesh. I could hear the sound of the ground collapsing and hundreds of terrified shinobi falling into the pits only to be crushed with more falling rock as the bombs went off too. Another explosion closer to us told me that our clones had done their job, then the memories assaulted me and I knew they succeeded. I looked behind us only to see a vortex of burning flame hurtling towards us.

Naru's eyes widened as we both pushed chakra into our legs and feet so we would gain speed. Ahead of us was the exit. We raced our way towards the light and together broke through the loose gravel head first. Naru rolled away from the hole and I managed to cover her with my body so she wouldn't get scorched by the flames. After a few minutes, we finally dared to get up and stiffly walked our way to the rendezvous point. We were too far away to see the fighting, but the rising smoke and sounds of battle told us it was still going on. Naru watching the smoke for a few minutes before turning to look at the exit that was now covered in soot. She reached over and placed a huge rock in front of it to cover the hole.

"There must have been some kind of explosive gas down there because that was too much fire for just our little exploding tags."

I shrugged, "Who knows, it's over with. You need to rest. Come on, let's go."

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Konoha's forces knew of Kakashi and Naru's mission and were waiting patiently for the signal. Anxiety was up for Sakumo and Minato because their children hadn't been seen in hours. Ronin had come back a while ago and the signal had yet to go out. They were beginning to worry. Some of the shinobi were beginning to think they two chunin were dead somewhere. Sakumo chewed on the inside of his lip as he watched the horizon he could see from the trench.

Ronin clapped him on the shoulder. "They're fine and we should be hearing from them soon."

Sakumo nodded and tuned to watch the horizon again. Then he saw it. The explosions began in the middle of the battlefield and Sakumo let out a cheer. As a whole, Konoha shouted and charged. Men and women began pouring out of the trenches in a last ditch effort to win the battle. The Iwa shinobi were torn between trying to see what happened in their middle to fighting against the oncoming shinobi. Then the other explosions rang out even louder and hotter in the front and back of Iwa's lines. Screams filled the air as pockets of fire flew from small holes in the trenches and scorched those around them.

Sakumo summoned his wolf pack and sent them out to hunt. He watched as his normally docile summons turned deadly and wild. Shiri jumped an enemy shinobi and proceeded to tear his throat out. Blood was everywhere as his summons tore into the other shinobi. Sakumo grinned before swiftly pulling his tanto out of its sheath. He looked at his bedraggled reflection in the blade before stabbing it home into the gut of an oncoming shinobi. Kakashi and Naru had come through after all.

A kunoichi raced forward with her own tanto raised in attack. Sakumo blocked her attack and growled at her over the roar of the battle.

"White Fang? Not as tough as I thought you would be. Actually kind of disappointing."

"Let's dance bitch."

"Gladly."

Sakumo pushed her away with his tanto and dodged an attack from another shinobi. Ronin was at his side defending his back as Sakumo sprinted forward with his tanto raised. The kunoichi ducked, but as Sakumo twisted his body, he was able to come back around and thrust his tanto into her back. She fell to the ground with a dull 'thud.'

Sakumo looked away from his kill to watch the battlefield. Konoha shinobi were overtaking the field and seemed to be winning. The Iwa shinobi were too disoriented from the explosions and from the sudden charge to regroup with their larger numbers. Sakumo grinned as Ronin began shouting in victory. The Iwa shinobi were retreating. Sakumo shouted out the order to keep going and watched as the once depressed Konoha forces were refreshed with the belief that they could actually win. The will of fire was burning brightly on the battlefield and Sakumo couldn't be more proud of what they were accomplishing.

"Keep fighting! To victory!"

Sakumo laughed out loud as Minato appeared beside him shouting with a renewed energy. He grabbed Sakumo's arm and pulled the older man forward to get a better look over the battlefield. "We're winning Sakumo! Look at them run!"

Sakumo snorted before spinning and slicing an enemy shinobi that tried to sneak behind them. "I see them Minato, but we've got to finish this now."

Minato rolled his eyes before saluting Sakumo and disappearing back into the fray. His famed Rasengan burning bright as he plowed through the other shinobi. The trenches were all clear, left behind for fighting on level ground. Sakumo reentered the fray after Minato with his tanto blazing beside him with his white chakra.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

We waited until the sky darkened and the stars began to dot the sky for the others to appear. Kakashi actually looked worried. I smiled at him. I had long since given him the mask back and told him to calm down. We hadn't heard anything for a while, nor had we seen any shinobi except ourselves. The rendezvous point was a huge tree in the middle of the grassy plains. He sat besides the tree and watched the stars.

"There's Orion, see it Naru? Orion's Belt is how you find it."

"No, but I see the Big Dipper."

He laughed to himself before blinking and standing up. The night had darkened to nearly black and any sounds we heard were met with suspicion. A faint running sound was heard as was the sound of howls. It was either some wild animal or one of Sensei's wolves. All of a sudden Shiri appeared from the darkness and jumped on Kakashi. She furiously greeted him by licking his face. I couldn't help but giggle at the sight, but that only brought her attention to me. She hopped off Kakashi and tackled me to the ground.

"Shiri! Get off! I'm fine."

Shiri growled lightly before sniffing me over to make sure I really was alright. I assumed she did the same thing to Kakashi and considering she attacked me next, he must have passed. More footsteps approached as Sensei's laughing voice was heard.

"Shiri, down girl!"

Kakashi had pulled himself into a sitting position and waved lazily at his dad. "So, how'd it go?"

Sakumo-sensei laughed louder before running over and scooping Kakashi up. Even at nine-years-old, Kakashi was still small enough for his dad to pick him up without much trouble. I laughed as he spun around once before running back over and picking me up the same way.

"Thanks to you two, we were able to annihilate the Iwa forces and gain control of the battlefield. Konoha won a huge victory today and took out a huge chunk of their numbers. You two are amazing."

Kakashi rolled his eyes and I smiled as he placed us on the ground. "Where's everybody at Dad?"

Sakumo-sensei scratched Shiri behind the ears before answering. "They're waiting at the edge of the grasslands. Our marching orders have been changed, so at this point there is no longer any use for us."

I blinked, "Where are we going now?"

"We're going to a little town near the border of Fire Country for our next orders. We're getting a small break before they send us out again, but they're not letting us return to Konoha because our newest orders are urgent."

Kakashi nodded his head. "What's so great about this town?"

Sensei got a really happy look in his eyes. "Not only do they have one of the biggest natural hot spring bathhouse in all of Fire Country, but they have a sweets shop that rivals the one in Konoha."

I snorted in amusement, "I knew sugar was in there somewhere."

Sensei laughed before pushing us forward. "Come on, we've got a ways to go before we get there. The sooner we get there, the better."

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

It took just under three days to reach the town and by the time they arrived, everyone was exhausted. Kakashi and Naru even more so because of their two life threatening runs they made over the past week. By the time they made it into town, the two youngest ones were dragging their feet from a combination of physical and chakra exhaustion. Minato was waiting at the gates for them and couldn't stop grinning as he saw them.

He walked over and ruffled both of the Chunin's heads. "Don't you two look tired?"

They both glared. Naru glared the hardest though. "If I wasn't so tired; I would find some way to prank you tonight."

Sakumo chuckled to himself before pointing to Naru. "She can room tonight with you if you want her to. We're all going to be bunking tonight."

There weren't very many shinobi in the town because only a few squads were being reassigned, but since the inn was giving them room and board for free, they always tried to not take up a lot of rooms. Also, most squads liked staying within a comfortable distance of each other just in case they had to protect themselves. It was survival instincts at their best.

Sakumo's team also had an odd number of members with three females and five males, the sleeping arrangements usually ended up with the girls together and the boys together. It was mostly just common courtesy, but when it really came down to it, no one cared who they slept beside. If that person was willing to protect your back, then they're good enough to bunk with you. The reason inns were different was because the beds were smaller and only suited for two people. Naru may have been small, but it would be uncomfortable for three people to sleep in a bed together and improper for her to sleep with an older male. Though he supposed Kakashi and Naru could have bunked together. Sakumo could have also requested a futon for her, but he figured both Minato and Naru would appreciate it more. Minato's squad was short a person; they lost a member during the fighting earlier and Minato needed Naru's amazing ability to make anyone smile.

Minato agreed and ushered Naru into the inn as Kakashi listlessly followed after Sakumo. He was aware enough to wave 'bye' to Naru, though. Once inside the room, Sakumo guided Kakashi towards the bed they would be sharing. His eyes closed as soon as his head hit the pillow. The other members of the squad began settling into the room themselves. Sai and Ai quietly talked before informing Sakumo they were heading to the bathhouse. Sakumo nodded as he removed Kakashi's sandals and pulled the cover over his son. There was no sense in trying to wake the boy up and force him into the bathroom. The sheets would survive a night without being inhabited by a completely clean person.

After Kakashi was taken care of, Sakumo lay on the bed and sighed deeply. Ronin grinned as he came out of the bathroom with a yukata on. "Tired Taichou?"

Sakumo nodded his head, "Exhausted. I just want to go to bed and sleep for days."

Kenichi laughed quietly, "I'm with Sakumo. I'm going to bed; see you guys in the morning."

As everyone began to either drift off into sleep or head to the bathhouse, across the hall Minato listened as Naru described their time in the tunnels. She was happily describing it with enthusiasm, complete with bed jumping motions. Minato's team watched with amused eyes as did Minato. The exhaustion she felt had faded and was replaced with a need to see her Dad smile.

"And then this Iwa shinobi fell through the top of the tunnel. His teammates kept making fun of his weight and all I could think of was getting out of there."

Minato laughed before patting the pillow. "Okay, okay, calm down. We'll finish this in the morning. You were exhausted just a few minutes ago."

Naru crossed her arms. "So? I'm not anymore."

Minato looked out the window before grinning, "I'll make you a deal. Sleep now and I'll find you ramen for breakfast."

Naru's eyes widened before she dived for the pillow and instantly closed her eyes. Minato chuckled quietly to himself and winked at his team. Soon, he too fell into a deep sleep beside her.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

When we woke up the next morning, the first thing we did was eat and then Dad practically dragged me into the bathroom for a bath before we hit the bathhouse. Being on the battlefield didn't allow for the most hygienic conditions. Our baths turned into quick wash downs in a stream if they were available or a rainwater wetted rag. I don't think I've had an actual bath in a couple of weeks. Soap in the trenches was hard to come by too, so my hair wasn't the same silver it once was. It had taken on a duller hue the longer I stayed in the trench. I was more than ready to get completely clean.

Dad told me to get into the bathtub while he searched through the cabinet in the bathroom. The inn usually stocked the bathroom cabinet with any kind of soap you could ever want. Dad pushed bottles around in the cabinet before finding the one he was looking for and tossing it to me. It splashed in the water before I could catch it.

"It's soap to kill lice. I'm pretty sure you don't have lice, but we were in a trench and I'm not taking any chances."

I nodded before lathering up the soap and scrubbing my head furiously. Dad chuckled before stepping out of the bathroom. I finished scrubbing my head with the lice soap before grabbing the other soap and finishing up the cleaning of my hair. I looked into the water and couldn't believe the grime and dirt that was swirling around in the water. War was filthy in more ways than one.

I stepped out of the bath and pulled on the smaller yukata before stepping out into the room. Dad had taken his bath before I woke up, so he was ready to go. The bathhouse sounded so good right about now. We got there and found Minato-sensei soaking against a large rock. He grinned at us before waving us over. "I had to search this entire town over to find Naru the ramen I promised her last night."

I grinned at him. "Sensei, you should know better than that. It's almost like promising Dad a cookie and not having one."

Dad playfully dunked my head underneath the water. "Did you find it?"

Sensei nodded before rubbing his eyes. "Yes I did, and she's now currently over in the women's side of the bathhouse relaxing off her five bowls of ramen."

"Well, that's Naru for…" Dad stopped talking as a very horrified shriek came from the woman's side, "What was that?" Another shriek came followed by a very nasty sounding 'thud.' Sensei blinked before grabbing his towel and wrapping it around his waist.

"Darn, I forgot Jiraiya was coming to give us our newest orders. He must have been 'researching.' Should we go handle damage control?"

Dad leaned back against the side of the pool. "Nope, I'm on break."

I rolled my eyes at Dad before heading after Sensei. Somehow I knew I needed to see this and finding a twitchy Jiraiya and a grinning Naru told me there was definitely a good story here.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I really was just minding my own business when I saw the very distinct sight of Jiraiya peeping against the bamboo of the wall. I didn't know whether to ignore him or tell somebody about it. Sai and Ai were sitting across from me. They were very vocal about their dislike of perverts and they could cause the pervert some damage. Then the idea came to me, what if I improved my 'sexy jutsu?'

The 'sexy jutsu' was one of those spur of the moment kind of techniques that Sensei has forbidden me from using within fifty feet of my father. He said something about Dad killing him for letting me use the technique or something like that. Anyway, I was required to pass over an Iwa controlled bridge so I could set explosives on the other side of the bridge. It was dark and rainy, but I thought that would be the best circumstances to get across with. Unfortunately I was wrong. The bridge was a covered bridge that required me to sneak my way across. I made it halfway across when my foot caught the edge of a broken board that caught the other shinobi's attention. I thought I was a very dead little girl when I got the strangest idea.

I immediately recognized all of the shinobi surrounding me were men and the only thing I could think of was a naked blonde woman with clouds covering her assets. I made it a reality. I used a regular henge and created my first original technique, the 'sexy no jutsu.' Needless to say, suddenly seeing a very naked woman was a shock to the men. I think a couple passed out, but I didn't stay around long enough to check. I released the henge and blew up the bridge. Later I showed Sensei my technique and he paled to the color of paper before making me promise to not tell Dad. Kakashi found it funny though and since then I've found a couple of special occasions to use the jutsu to save my backside.

So there Jiraiya was spying on the other women in the bathhouse and I wasn't going to stand for it. I wrapped a towel around myself and ran into one of the stalls to slip on a yukata. I then walked outside to stand beside Jiraiya as he peeked through the bamboo.

"Whatcha doin'?"

Jiraiya froze and turned around. "Brat, I'm researching."

I nodded once. "Researching? What?"

He sighed, "Just go away. I'm busy."

"I don't think so."

Jiraiya sighed deeply before turning around. "Nothing you do is going to get me to leave."

I raised an eyebrow and smirked. "Oh really?" I brought my hands together in the same hand signs that I used for the 'sexy jutsu,' but changed one of the final signs. By the time I finished, the gathering of my chakra caught Jiraiya's attention. I had to hand it to myself, this jutsu was simply amazing. The jutsu started off with the silhouette of a very voluptuous woman in a thick mist. I moved a little to the right and then swung my hips to the left, all the while with my back turned to him. I could hear his excited panting as I slowly began turning to look at him.

Then as he leaned forward I turned all the way and dropped the mist. Jiraiya shrieked loudly and fell onto his backside. Instead of the cute, naked woman that he thought he was getting, he was met with a very old, wrinkly and warty old lady. I couldn't stop laughing as I dropped the henge and watched Jiraiya twitch on the ground in the fetal position. A part of me was happy that I got some payback for everything he put me through.

Dad and Kakashi ran up a few minutes later in their own yukatas. Dad looked at the twitching Jiraiya and poked him with his big toe. "What's wrong with him?"

I shrugged my shoulders. "Trust me, you don't want to know." Kakashi caught my eye and I winked at him. "Dad, just leave him here. He'll be fine or someone will pick him up."

Dad shook his head. "Come on Naru, tell me please!"

I shrugged again. "Okay fine."

I brought my hands together once more and performed the jutsu. I held the jutsu for a few minutes before releasing it. Dad was silent and Kakashi was laughing uncontrollably. Dad sat down on the ground and I was afraid I broke him too. I had the worst luck with people. Then his shoulders started shaking and finally he looked up with tears streaming down his face, he was laughing so hard.

"Yo-you deve-developed a completely us-useless technique to use on J-Jiraiya?"

I put my hands on my hips and glared at him as he composed himself. I also kind of said something I shouldn't have. "It's not useless! It's actually a variation of a very useful jutsu that I developed. Sexy no jutsu has gotten me out of a few tough spots!"

Dad stopped laughing and stared at me. "Sexy no jutsu?"

Kakashi stopped laughing too and began slowly backing away from Dad. I gulped before backing away. I quickly looked around and pretended to hear Sensei calling me. "Umm, what was that sensei? I'm coming! Sorry Dad, got to go!" I sprinted out of there just as he was getting to his feet.

"Namikaze Naru! You get back here and explain this jutsu!"


	31. Part 2: Chapter 2

**Part 2: Chapter 2**

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

We ran for our lives, again.

I'm getting so sick of running for my life. Once this war is over, I am never running anywhere else. If I can't get there fast enough with a brisk walk or jog, then I'm not going. I'm putting my foot down. Speaking of feet, if I didn't pick mine up, then I was going to have to deal with the very irate blond trailing just footsteps behind me. I looked over at Kakashi. He was keeping pace with me, and I contemplated tripping him. Okay, it was only a passing thought. I would never sacrifice Kakashi like that; we were too close for me to ever think I could function without him. We knew each other better than we knew ourselves. Losing Kakashi would be like losing my right hand. So I couldn't just sacrifice him for my own getaway. Though, with Dad's angry expression burned into my brain, it was an option that was very hard to pass up.

Kakashi suddenly turned right and I had to quickly changed directions to follow after him. My poor feet throbbed because I had to skid to a stop on the pavement and wasn't wearing shoes. I knew I should have slipped them on before leaving the bathhouse, but since I didn't expect to be running for my life, I hadn't thought about it. My thoughts were cut short as I noticed very quickly that we were heading straight into the men's side of the bathhouse. I reached over and pulled Kakashi's sleeve before trying to talk over the wind whipping around my ears.

"I can't go in there!"

Kakashi turned and grinned, "Your choice Naru, Sensei or the bathhouse."

I pouted, but made my decision anyway. Potentially seeing more of my Sensei and comrades than I ever wanted to see was a whole lot better than Dad catching up with us. I grabbed the sleeve of Kakashi's yukata and closed my eyes. He would hopefully lead me where we were going and I wouldn't see anything I didn't want to. The entire time I listened to our feet echo off the walls of the bathhouse I chanted a mantra inside my head.

 _Please don't be naked, please don't be naked, please don't be naked, for the love of all that's right in the world, please don't be naked!_

"Dad!"

I still had my eyes tightly clenched as I felt Kakashi slow down and gradually stop. I heard Sensei's surprised shout of my name before giving out a very quick order of 'cover up' to whoever was beside him. Suddenly there was the scuffle of feet and a gust of warm air. I slowly opened an eye and peeked around me to find us still in the hallway before actually entering the bathing area. Thankfully it was clear of everyone except Sensei and us. I lifted my eyes slowly, praying that Sensei was clothed and happily found him wrapped up in a yukata. He lifted a hand up to pinch the bridge of his nose.

"Care to explain why you two are running around like something is trying to eat you?"

I turned quickly as I heard the very sudden and quick steps of someone running up the hall behind us. I knew it was Dad. I immediately began tugging Kakashi away from the open hallway. There wasn't any place for us to really go, but we were sitting ducks if we stayed in the middle of the hallway. So I made an executive decision and hid behind Sakumo-sensei. Sensei obviously thought we were crazy, but played along anyway. Then Dad came barreling down the hallway and ran right into Sensei. Kakashi barely managed to pull me out of the way as they both tumbled to the ground. We both silently laughed at them as they attempted to untangle themselves from each other. Sensei was the first to break away and stand up.

"Okay, what's going on?"

Dad glared from his crumpled position on the floor and pointed accusingly at me. "She needs to explain this 'sexy no jutsu' thing."

A look of understanding washed over Sensei's face as he nodded, "Oh, that's what this is about?" He turned to us and pointed to the door, "You two go get something to eat while Minato and I have a talk."

Kakashi shot me a look of confusion, but I pulled him after me. I didn't care what they were going to talk about, just as long as it didn't involve me explaining or, God forbid, showing Dad my sexy no jutsu.

"I don't think you're off the hook, Naru."

I shrugged, "Doesn't matter to me right now. I'm free for the time being. Now let's go get this food!"

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

"You knew about it?"

Sakumo shrugged as he led Minato back into his squad's room at the inn. Minato instantly began pacing the floor, his back facing Sakumo as the man began explaining his thoughts on the jutsu. "Well, yeah. It got her out of a really sticky situation and I admit it's a little crass, but it's not like she's doing anything wrong. I mean I'm actually happy she did it."

The room chilled as Minato's back tensed and he slowly turned around. Through gritted teeth he questioned Sakumo, "What is that supposed to mean?"

Sakumo quickly brought up his hands to motion for Minato to calm down. "Not in a perverted way, Minato. I was worried after her nearly being raped that she would have body issues. Though it's not her own body she's showing off, it's still a female body. I was worried that she would turn into some kind of introvert and obviously my fears were misguided. Naru seems like she's going to have a very healthy attitude towards sex and sexuality as a whole."

Minato buried his face into his hands as he sat down on one of the beds. "Let's not use the words 'sex' and 'Naru' in the same sentence. She's too young for us to even have to worry about stuff like that."

Sakumo shook his head slowly, "I don't know about that, Minato. You do know girls start puberty sooner than boys do and their changes are a whole lot more different than ours was."

"So? That stuff is still years away."

Sakumo shook his head, "Did you even listen when you had to go to the class on dealing with students and sexuality when you became a Jounin? You know, the one that's mandatory in the event you have students?"

Minato raised an eyebrow, "What class? No one told me about a class."

Sakumo face-palmed. "I can't believe it. I didn't even want students and was forced to go to the class."

"It's a good thing you did too; you ended up with a student."

"Yeah. It is a good thing I did, because you need a crash course in puberty."

Minato grimaced and actually whined loudly, "Why?"

"How old is Naru, Minato?"

"Nine, why?"

Sakumo sighed before sitting down on the bed in front of Minato. "Some girls can start puberty at nine. Have you noticed her growth spurts lately? She's getting a lot taller lately and growing in other places too. Her clothes are fitting a little snugger in places they didn't before, if you catch my drift."

Minato's eyes widened and in a horrified whisper he choked out one word. " _Breasts_?"

Sakumo chuckled at the sheer horror in Minato's voice. "Yes Minato, breasts and hips. You know those things girls get when they go through puberty."

"She's not allowed to have those."

"Sorry friend, you can't stop her from getting them."

"Is it really noticeable and I just haven't been seeing them?"

Sakumo shook his head, "No idiot. Sai's the medic-nin for my team and she gave Naru her physical a few weeks back and just wanted me to get a heads up on some changes that could be taking place. She did the same for Kakashi. I figured you'd want to be informed of your daughter's report."

Minato took several deep breaths before exhaling and standing up. "So when does Naru start going all crazy on us?"

Sakumo raised an eyebrow, "Crazy? Explain, 'cause I'm not following you."

Minato glared at Sakumo, "You know what I'm talking about," Minato quickly looked around before whispering, "her monthly visitor."

"Why are you whispering?"

Minato shrugged and crossed his arms, "It's common knowledge that if you talk about something out loud, it's going to appear."

Sakumo shook his head in disbelief, "Okay, first off, she's not likely to go 'crazy' on us. That's just rumors going around from other men. Naru's a level headed girl, not likely to go 'crazy.' Nozomi was never crazy during hers." Sakumo thought back before biting the inside of his cheek, "Okay, there were a couple of times, but they usually involved me doing something that bordered stupid."

Minato shook his head furiously, "Jiraiya said it was a curse to men everywhere and that once a woman was on hers, she changed into a monster."

Sakumo sighed, "Remember where you got this information from, Minato. You live with Kushina; does she change drastically once a month?"

Minato shrugged as he sat down, "Don't know. I always plan missions during her time of the month so I won't have to deal with it." Sakumo couldn't help it, he busted into a fit of laughter. He clutched his sides to keep his ribs from hurting as he laughed hard at Minato's confession. Minato pouted the entire time. "Okay, it's not that funny, Sakumo."

Sakumo nodded and choked out, "Yes it is!"

Minato rolled his eyes and sneered at Sakumo, "Calm down. You've got it easy. You're not going to have to deal with what I'm going to have to deal with. You've got a boy. I've got menstrual cycles, breasts, hips and bras."

"Don't forget leg shaving."

Minato actually whimpered in despair, which threw Sakumo into another fit of laughter.

"Don't laugh! It's not fair; you've got it easy with Kakashi."

Sakumo raised an eyebrow at Minato, "So you would rather explain to my son, the same boy that acts like a thirty-year-old trapped in a nine-year-old's body, about awkward erections, wet dreams, muscle growth and my personal favorite, his voice cracking?"

Minato paled slightly before leaning back and chuckling. "I hated giving mission reports when my voice was changing. Nothing more embarrassing than giving a report in front of the Hokage and your teammates only to have your voice go all squeaky and high pitched."

Sakumo grinned, "When I was about thirteen I detested going on infiltration missions with my team. We didn't have a kunoichi and I matured a little later than they did. My voice didn't deepen until I was almost fifteen, which made me the perfect candidate to play 'kunoichi' when we needed to seduce our way into places."

It was Minato's turn to laugh at his friend's embarrassment. "Okay, maybe I was wrong; we're both going to have a time when those two go through puberty. I think I'll take up drinking."

Sakumo didn't drop his grin as he stood up and nodded towards the door. "Come on, let's go get something to eat before they eat it all. We'll just have to take this one step at a time."

Minato stood up from the bed and walked over to the door before Sakumo. He opened the door and stopped just outside it. He gave Sakumo a bright smile, "So does this mean I can call you Saku-chan?"

Sakumo's eye twitched as he began chasing after Minato. "You jackass!"

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

Once Jiraiya scraped himself off the pavement and Dad and Sensei stopped acting like children, we sat down to receive our newest orders. Naru managed to find her shoes, though she wasn't wearing them because her feet were a little sore from our run. I, on the other hand, was trying my hardest to not groan at the mission. It was going to be long and complicated. We were going on an infiltration mission deep into Iwa controlled Kusagakure. Apparently Iwa was comfortable enough with their position in the war to hold a banquet on their side of Kusa. A celebration for their latest victory of conquering more of Kusa's countryside and getting just a few miles closer to Konoha.

A team consisting of me, Dad, Naru and Jiraiya, were going to attempt to infiltrate the banquet and assassinate one of Iwa's top strategists. The strategist was a woman simply known as 'Ishikawa no Iwa,' the Stone River of Rock, who was attending the banquet on request of the Tsuchikage. This woman has such a great mind for strategy that her plans and techniques are valued throughout the shinobi nations, even in Konoha. Simply put, she's brilliant, but that brilliance came with a price. She became so famous and powerful that her given name was forgotten; leaving her with only the nearly untouchable persona she made for herself as Ishikawa. People were either terrified of her or wanted to be near her for bragging rights, which worked perfectly for Konoha.

We were going to send Naru in under the guise of a young daughter of one of the banquet guests. Ishikawa had a rather unusual habit. She had a soft spot for young children and would lather attention on them if they caught her eye. No one knew why she lathered so much attention on these children. She usually looked for unique girls with remarkable features and with Naru's innocent blue eyes and charm, there was no way Ishikawa would pass Naru over. Naru was an eye catcher, but the mission was risky because of Naru's past involvement with Iwa and the simple fact she was a dead ringer for Minato. Jiraiya said he was going to take care of that part of the mission, though, and for us to not worry. Once Naru charmed her way into Ishikawa's private room, we were going to eliminate her and escape into the night. Hopefully without being caught. It may seem a little mean for us to exploit her habits, but she was currently planning a full-scale assault on Konoha. Iwa couldn't be allowed to finish their plans.

Jiraiya ended the meeting and told us to get ready; we were leaving at that very moment. We needed to get to the banquet at least a day before it started. We were meeting up with one of Jiraiya's spies, who would give us more information and help with our disguises. The banquet didn't start 'til tomorrow night, which gave us plenty of time for travel and preparations with the spy. It wouldn't even take a full day to get to our rendezvous point to meet up with Jiraiya's spy. We just had to make sure we stayed clear of any patrols and remained unseen.

I wasn't looking forward to the mission because it was such a change of pace from what we'd been doing for the past couple of months. Battlefields were our missions and going from that loudness and activity to an infiltration where I would spend a majority of my time waiting was just unappealing to me. I wasn't complaining though, because it was a whole lot better than sentry duty or running for our lives.

"Come on, Kakashi, we've got to hurry."

I nodded and followed after Dad. Jiraiya and Sensei had stayed behind though. That's when it hit me; Sensei hadn't been included in the group going to Kusa. I couldn't help but wonder what his new orders were.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Minato sighed as he stared at Jiraiya. They still hadn't made up over the whole Naru situation. Jiraiya hadn't apologized and Minato didn't like having very much to do with him. It hurt to cut off his father-figure, but he wasn't going to let the man treat his daughter the way he did. Minato wasn't standing for that. Two years was a long time, though, and the heat between them had cooled, but the wall was still there.

"Minato."

"Jiraiya."

Jiraiya gave Minato an exasperated look before squaring his jaw. "Sarutobi-sensei was pleased with the outcome of the battle, but he worries about Kakashi and Naru. He's afraid they are too good together."

Minato raised an eyebrow at Jiraiya, "What do you mean 'too good together'?"

Jiraiya closed his eyes and held up his finger to tick off the Sandaime's fears. "He's afraid that they're going to handicap themselves if they should ever get separated on different teams. He's afraid they're too dependent on each other. He's also afraid that they are denying themselves a separate identity."

"None of that makes sense. The Third would be stupid to separate Kakashi and Naru. That teamwork isn't something you find in every team. They know each other's moves without having to think about them. They're so in-sync that it's scary sometimes, like they are connected telepathically or something. If we separated them, then Konoha would lose one hell of a team."

Jiraiya nodded, "I've seen them in action and I know how well they work together, but specialization wise, they are incompatible. They're both at the time in their shinobi careers where they need to start training for a certain division in shinobi skills if they want to specialize. I've known Kakashi since he was little and Sakumo's always worried over the boy because he wants to specialize in assassination. What does Naru want to specialize in, Minato? It's demolition, isn't it?"

Minato nodded once, "Yeah. What of it?"

"Assassination and demolition don't exactly go together well in a team. Kakashi would need to be on a team that specialized in stealth and espionage. Naru could be on a number of different teams. She could be on a tracking team or she could be on a last response team. Naru's pretty versatile in her specialization because demolition can be used anywhere. Kakashi, on the other hand, is very limited in what team he needs to be on. Let's face it, it's a miracle the kid's not already wearing the ANBU tattoo."

"He's too young Jiraiya."

Jiraiya shook his head, "Both you and Sakumo need to wake up over Kakashi. He's going to be ANBU, whether you two like it or not. I know for a fact they've already sent in the request for both Kakashi and Naru. Your two chunin are making quite a splash in not only Iwa, but also Konoha. Check the latest Iwa bingo books and you'll understand what I'm talking about."

Minato's forehead was scrunched together in confusion, "What are you talking about? We haven't been able to pick up a new one yet. You wouldn't happen to have a copy would you?"

Jiraiya shook his head again, "No, I don't. When you read it, make sure you're sitting down, okay?"

Minato nodded, "Okay, now what about my new mission orders?"

Jiraiya pulled out a scroll. "Kakashi and Naru's specialization training starts after this next mission. Kakashi will go with you and Naru will stay with Sakumo. You and Kakashi are heading deep into Iwa on a classified infiltration and assassination mission. You're going to be accompanied by Kakashi's ANBU coach. She's going to pretty much teach Kakashi the tricks of the trade while evaluating if he's assassin material. Naru and Sakumo are heading into Ame with me. There is talk of an uprising being planned against Hanzo, we're going to check it out. I'm also going to be Naru's coach."

Minato growled low in his throat, "You're a seals master, not demolition. How are you going to help Naru?"

"Sensei thought it would be a great way for me to get to know Naru and if she learns seals then that would cut down on the explosive material she would have to carry on her person. She would benefit from it and while I'm teaching her seals I'm getting her training with a miner that actually worked the mines underneath Ame. She's going to be well educated about mines and with my seals training, she'll know how to bring them down as well as protect herself. I also have an old friend in Ame that was a demolition expert. I've already arranged plans with him to meet with Naru." Jiraiya stared hard into Minato's eyes, "I promise, I'm going to take good care of her. I may not trust her, but I'd never throw her to the wolves."

Minato looked away from his Sensei's eyes and nodded, "How long?"

"Six months at the least, a year at the most. Your mission is very crucial, but the scroll will explain it further. I'm telling Sakumo after this next mission. I didn't want the kids finding out and it affecting them."

Minato swallowed, "They're not going to like this at all. I don't even like it." He looked at the ground in thought, "But, it has to be done doesn't it?"

Jiraiya nodded sadly. He hated seeing his student so distraught. "Naru and Kakashi will go their separate ways with their respective senseis in the next two weeks. They'll be fine and if they can handle the separation without it hindering their skills, then Sensei's mind will be at ease and they can be placed back together. We both know he's only doing this so they will be well rounded and able to function separately. He said they would understand."

"They are shinobi and their Hokage gave them an order, so of course they understand and they'll follow without question. They don't call Hokage-sama 'The Professor' for nothing. If he thinks it's a good idea, then he's obviously got a reason for his orders."

Jiraiya nodded before laying his hand on Minato's shoulder and squeezing slightly. "Rest up Minato. The next year of your life is going to be hard."

Jiraiya began to walk away, but Minato stopped him. "Jiraiya, Sensei, I have a request." Jiraiya nodded, "When you have Naru, teach her the Rasengan. I'm not going to have time and, besides, I have another technique that I want to teach her."

Jiraiya agreed before sighing, "How is that new technique of yours?"

Minato grinned, "Let's just say that I've found the answer in seals. Now I just have to tie everything together. I've hit a small block with my planning."

"Blocks are always fun. I find that researching usually helps my blocks."

"Yeah, but you're a pervert."

"Hey! I'm not a pervert. I'm a super pervert!"

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

As planned, we traveled the entire day and arrived at a secluded house in the middle of a dense marsh. It was raining, but the canopy of branches above provided perfect cover for us. Jiraiya led us the entire way, which was really interesting considering we were all in full henge. It was strange to see a young man with brown hair when I knew it was old, white haired Jiraiya. Kakashi stayed beside me the entire walk. Dad kept giving us the strangest looks before we left, almost like he had something to tell us, but couldn't. I couldn't determine if the look was full of worry or pity, which didn't sit well with me. I think it unnerved Kakashi just as much as it unnerved me.

Speaking of Kakashi, originally he was sporting black hair and green eyes, but Sensei quietly asked him to change his eye color before we left the inn. He looked too much like Nozomi for Sensei to ignore. Kakashi felt bad about it and apologized to Sensei, who in turn laughed it off. Though it sounded really half-hearted to me. My stubborn friend had also henged his mask so it looked like he had a face when he was really wearing his mask. Why? I'm not sure; he does things sometimes that just don't make sense.

Sensei was sporting a slightly peppered hair color, making him look older than his twenty-nine-years. I had a light brown hair color with my same blue eyes. It was a risk keeping my eyes the same, but the pervert kept mentioning they were going to be our ticket to Ishikawa. He didn't want anything changing them. I didn't see what the big fuss was over them, they were just eyes.

We were all dressed in thick, robe-like clothes that covered us from head to toe. Kakashi and I were practically swimming in ours, but the clothes kept us dry and covered our ninja equipment. The robes also made our body size undistinguishable. The clothes were hooded and colored in dreary grays and browns. It was overall a very depression outfit, but it was the norm for Kusa style. Kusagakure was a very unorganized and poor place. Kusa was a small, bordering country to the left of Fire Nation and was the only block between Iwa and Konoha. Kusa was the battleground and if Kusa fell completely to Iwa, then Konoha would be their next stop. So of course, the shinobi of Iwa were making life for the inhabitants of Kusa a living Hell. I was stuck between pity and despair every time I saw the ruined towns and people. The only thing about Kusagakure wasn't depressing was Jiraiya's spy. He held a certain charm to him that just didn't go with his surroundings.

The quaint little man greeted us with a tight grin and ushered us into the house quickly. The inside of his house was surprising warm and inviting, something I didn't expect. The outside was so dreary that I never imagined the comfort inside. I guess that's a perfect example of 'never judge a book by its cover.' The man introduced himself as Zing, before laughing and promising that wasn't his given name, just an alias. He couldn't have his identity given out, lest he compromise his position in Jiraiya's spy network. Even the house we were staying in wasn't his actual house. He definitely had his act together. He led us into the furthest room and told us to wait. He looked around suspiciously before locking the door. The room was windowless and looked to be nothing more than a walk-in closet. It was pitch black in the room as I heard him tap the wall lightly three times and hit it with something heavy, his foot perhaps. A soft rumble was heard and a sliver of light entered the room.

Zing winked at me before guiding us down a set of stairs and into a hidden basement. I almost whistled at the secrecy and planning that had to have gone into the room. It was a fully stocked and furnished room with a few beds. The walls were adorned with several maps and pictures of multiple important figures from Iwa. A couple had red slash marks through them. There was also a closet filled with several kimonos and other clothes. If I had to guess, I would say they were costumes for the many characters he played.

"Welcome to my burrow. This room has everything you guys will need to pull this mission off." Zing walked over and pointed to the walls. "Any kind of surveillance or intelligence information you could ever want. I've been watching Ishikawa for almost half-a-year and know anything about her, from what she ate this morning to who she spent the night with last night."

I walked over and was mesmerized by the quality of the pictures and information. "How did you get all of this?"

Zing grinned and in the light I could see he was missing a couple of teeth. He reached down and picked something up from the ground, it was a little black rat. "These little beauties are my summons. No one has held a contract with rats in almost a century, but I found the contract and the rest is history. These little guys have such a horrible reputation, but they're the perfect size for high-key infiltrations. No one thinks twice about a rat scurrying around a house or apartment. I even taught a few to talk, which gives me all the information I need."

I nodded in understanding, but stayed away from the rat. I didn't have a problem with them, but they unnerved me. The burrow was completely protected from outsiders, so it was the perfect safe house. We could drop our henges and get ready here without fear of being caught. Well, we wouldn't actually get dressed for the banquet here, but we would assume our character identities and get the plans ready for the assassination. We would dress for the banquet in an inn inside the town where it was being hosted, under assumed names.

Sensei was going to sneak into the banquet dressed as a waiter or some other kind of servant. He was going to actually be on the floor and working around the guests. His job was to keep an eye out for Ishikawa and make sure she noticed me. I guess he could be considered the scout for this mission because he was 'scouting' out the enemy. Kakashi was going to hang behind and mostly watch. His job was to assassinate her and get me out of there. He was literally going to be the shadow on the wall and follow my steps as I moved to follow our target. I wasn't really sure what Jiraiya was going to do, but he did have to handle my kimono. It was a formal event, which required formal attire. I have never worn a kimono in my entire life, both of them. Sensei couldn't do it because he had to leave before us so he could acquire a spot as a server. My job was to somehow catch the attention of the target and get her to like me enough to give me a private meeting with her.

Jiraiya clapped his hands together. "Let's get started!"

Kakashi didn't have to change completely. Well, he would while we were traveling, but once we started the mission then he was going to keep his appearance with just a few slight changes. He would need to change his hair color, but even that was just a precaution. He was simply going to stay in the shadows and away from the banquet. All he really needed was a hooded coat, similar to the ones we wore coming into Kusa. Zing had already picked him out a very nice tree to wait in.

Sensei henged his hair into a dark brown color and made his eyes a light hazel color. Once we left for the inn where we would get ready, he was going to change into his waiter's uniform. Jiraiya simply used the same henge he used previously, with his tattoos covered over and his long mane shortened. I was told to henge my hair into a strawberry blonde color. Kakashi looked like he was going to have kittens when he heard Jiraiya give that particular order. Strawberry blonde was really just a fancy way of saying the hybrid of red and blonde hair coming together. It's extremely rare as a natural color, but what I know Kakashi was having a fit over was Kushina. Would I look a lot like my biological mother if my hair had a redder tint to it? If I did, then how were we going to explain that one away?

I nodded my head and did it. I waited for the gasps of recognition, but none came. Kakashi didn't look relieved though. I just ignored his frantic looks and waited for Jiraiya's next orders. He was too busy rummaging through Zing's desk to even look at me.

"Everything else is going to stay the same on you. Except those marks on your face, cover them up."

I rolled my eyes at his back and took the bottle from it. It was a liquid make-up used to cover blemishes. I hated make-up, but I put it on over my scars just to shut him up. Zing looked over me before giving me another grin and a 'thumbs up.'

"Lookin' good, sweetheart. Ishikawa won't bypass you at all. You'll catch her eye for sure."

I just hoped so.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

The Konoha group sat down at the large table in the middle of the room and began their discussion of the mission. Zing pushed over a giant rolling corkboard with several pictures and maps tacked to it. He pointed to the first picture, which just so happened to be a picture of a woman. Her brown hair was pulled back into a tight bun and her green eyes gave off a calculating, intelligent look. Her face was round and full, with a slightly crooked nose. It looked like her nose was never set right after having it broken. She was a shorter woman, but her straight posture gave off a very commanding aura. They were looking at Iwa's Ishikawa.

"Ishi here is thirty-three-years old, currently single, though it's not because no one's interested. She's Iwa's top strategist and possibly the best in all of the shinobi nations. Ishikawa hates formal events and tries her hardest to get out of them. The only reason she's attending this one is because her kage asked her to go. The Tsuchikage wants Ishikawa to start thinking about taking on an apprentice, which is why she shows attention to certain girls that catch her eye. What appears to be a lonely woman is really a calculating woman inconspicuously looking for an apprentice. She wants to see these girls without being prompted what to say by their senseis or parents."

Zing grabbed another picture, which had a floor plan clipped to the back of it. "The banquet is taking place in one of the abandoned government buildings in the small town of Zassou. It's a pretty standard building with a huge ballroom in the middle and ten upper level rooms. Ishikawa has taken up residence in the corner room facing west. If she takes an interest in Naru, then she'll approach her and convince her to join her upstairs. She only sees potential apprentices one at a time, so there is no worry about unnecessary casualties. Another thing, she only looks for female apprentices." Zing pointed to a picture of the outside of the building, "This tree gives perfect cover and was actually a gift from Konoha a long time ago. It's tall and has many leaves, perfect for cover. Kakashi is going to be hiding out here."

The group nodded and Zing pulled down another picture. It was a picture of a room on the opposite side of Ishikawa's room. "Jiraiya is going to be here. My summons tell me that there are some papers there that look really interesting. Sakumo's going to be on the floor and hopefully Naru will be with Ishikawa. Any questions?"

There were no questions, which caused the man to smile brightly. "Great! Now, you guys need to hurry to the inn in Zassou for check-in. Normally, I would say stay here a night, but it's crucial that you arrive to your room sometime the night before. Something about a silly custom of the Iwa elite. My rats usually don't pay attention to manners, but they caught a few people talking about this one. Now if you're all ready, I'll escort you out the back way, which will lead you to the main road and right into Zassou."

The group bid the spy goodbye and headed into Zassou. The town was just as run down as the rest of Iwa's side of Kusagakure, but there were quite a few renovation projects going on. It seemed that Iwa was planning to stay in Kusa for good. Naru immediately recognized the government building where the banquet would take place and pointed it out to Kakashi. They were all in their henges, so seeming like curious tourists was a perfect addition to their guise.

The plan was simple. Naru and Jiraiya would check into the inn while Kakashi and Sakumo waited around the town. Then once Naru and Jiraiya were settled into their room, they would let the other two in through the window. Luckily for Sakumo and Kakashi it was a one-story building and their room was on the backside of the inn. They would sleep for the night and wake up the next morning to begin Naru's transformation into 'Chika,' her alias for this mission. Sakumo had to leave before everyone else early the next morning so he could report to his job site. He had to go early because he needed to be as believable as possible for the mission to succeed. Kakashi would stick around with Jiraiya and Naru 'til they left for the banquet, at which time Kakashi would take up residence in his tree. Naru would parade herself around the banquet in order to catch Ishikawa's attention, with Sakumo watching her secretly. Jiraiya would also be attending the banquet, but would sneak upstairs while everyone was partying downstairs. If he got caught, then he was simply going to put on a drunken act and hopefully get away without jeopardizing the mission. Everyone doubted he would get caught, but just to be safe, they needed a backup plan.

If everything went according to plan, then they would be out of Kusagakure before the morning after the banquet.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

Jiraiya and I got into the inn and waited for Sensei and Kakashi. We didn't talk, didn't look at each other, and didn't even acknowledge each other's presence. I was fine with that. He seemed fine with that too. When Sensei and Kakashi finally got into the room, the moon was full in the sky and the stars twinkled happily above. It had to have been about three in the morning. I was exhausted and ready for this mission to be over with already. Sensei must have sensed it because he ordered both of us to sleep while they did some of their own last minute recon. We didn't protest and slipped into the futons the hotel provided for us.

I slept through the entire night and didn't wake up 'til Jiraiya unceremoniously prodded me with his big toe the next morning. Sensei was long gone by the time we woke up and Kakashi was taking a quick shower. Jiraiya looked me up and down before sighing.

"Go get something to eat from the kitchen down the hall. You're going to need the energy. After you finish eating, we'll start getting you ready. The affair officially starts at noon, but Ishikawa won't get there 'til about dusk. We've got to get you in full kimono and go over your manners before then. It's nine now and we've got 'til five. So get going."

I rolled my eyes at him before taking off down the hall. I was halfway down the hall when I remembered to check to see if my henge was still intact. Luckily, it was. I sighed in relief and continued into the kitchen. An older woman was there, harping a young girl as she frantically tried to remove a blazing pan from the stove.

"I'm sorry madam! I'm sorry! I didn't mean to burn the meat!"

The gray haired woman growled fiercely as she snatched the pan from girl and tossed it in the sink. She turned on the girl with lips stretched thinly over her teeth. "You foolish girl, can you do anything right? I should have just let those shinobi take you, maybe you would have made me more money on your back!"

I watched as the girl recoiled as if the older lady had struck her. In a shaky voice she disagreed. "No madam, please give me another chance. You promised father."

The older woman rolled her eyes, "Your damned father was a dreamer and I said whatever I could to get him to go away. He was only endangering our lives."

I decided then to make my presence known by knocking over a box of crackers. The woman's head snapped up and a smile made its way across her face. "Well hello dear, what can I do for you?"

I resisted the urge to spit in the woman's face and help the girl. I hated people who mistreated others. It didn't matter that the girl was having a tough time, if the woman would just get off her back, then maybe she would do it right. "I came to get something for breakfast."

The woman nodded before throwing a heated glare toward the girl. "My little cook-in-training here will take care of you. I'm going to grab something for my headache." She gave me another smile before giving the girl a very pointed look. Almost as if she was daring her to mess up my food.

The girl nodded and quickly set to work cooking up an egg omelet. She didn't acknowledge my presence as she began frantically stuffing the omelet full of meat from a tray on the counter. Once it was finished cooking, she thrust it into my hands and bowed low. I took the omelet over to the small table and took a bite. The taste was a little off, but I couldn't place exactly what was wrong. I must have made a face because the girl was close to sobbing as I tried another bite. My stomach immediately protested. I gulped down that sick feeling and cut a large bite from the center. That's when I smelled the meat. It had soured.

My stomach lurched and I rushed to the nearest trashcan. I watched in silent disgust as everything I had eaten in the last two days came back up and into the trashcan. I lifted my head long enough to stare at the meat on the table, which sent a bunch of queasy quivers through my entire body. I was so out of it that I didn't even notice when Jiraiya came down the hall and carried me back into the room.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

Naru looked horrible.

Poor thing, she was vomiting up everything in her stomach 'til there was nothing left. She eventually was just dry heaving and clutching the trashcan close. I sat beside her and tried to ignore the sounds as she dry heaved into the trashcan. I smoothed her hair back and handed her a washcloth. She took the washcloth, but before she could do anything with it, her stomach sent her back into clutching the trashcan. I sighed and cursed the klutzy kitchen girl as I gently ran the washcloth over the back of her neck and across her cheeks to wash away the tear tracks. The force of her heaving had brought tears to her eyes.

All of a sudden she jumped up and sped into the bathroom. Jiraiya sighed, "Well looks like it decided to come out the other end too."

I glared at the man before going over and knocking on the door. "Naru? You okay?"

She didn't speak, only moaned a little. Finally a shaky answer came out, "Yeah, but what about the mission?"

Jiraiya stood from his seated position on the bed, "Naru's not going to be well enough to move 'til after her body expels the germs, so she obviously can't go on the mission."

I raised an eyebrow at him, "Well then, what are we going to do? Dad's already in position and waiting for us. Naru's the only one that can go and she obviously can't do that in her condition."

Jiraiya shrugged as the sound of the bathtub running flittered from underneath the door. "Oh, we're continuing with the mission, we have to. Besides, we've still got you. You can take Naru's place."

"Okay, but I thought Ishikawa only looked for girls."

Jiraiya walked over to the closet before taking out the bag that held the kimono. "Exactly. Think you can fit in her kimono?"

My entire thought process stopped. Was he suggesting that I was going to play the girl for this mission? I wasn't 'girly' enough to be a girl. This was a serious blow to my manly ego. "Y-you can't be serious! I'm not a girl!"

"Nope, but you are young enough to be passed off as one. We'll just have to do something with your hair, rid you of that mask and get you in this kimono."

Naru came out of the bathroom with an apologetic look on her face, "I'm so sorry, Kakashi. I'm trying to get better." Her face went pale again and she headed back into the bathroom.

I sighed, "It's okay Naru, I'll do it." I turned to Jiraiya and glared, "We never speak of this again!"

He grinned evilly, "whatever you say, 'kashi-chan."

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Naru leaned against the cool tile of the bathroom and groaned. Though Kyuubi healed all of her battle and training wounds, everyday things, like the flu and food poisoning, weren't in his jurisdiction. She would have to suffer through it just like everyone else. The fur ball did agree to help it along faster, but he wasn't going to be able to take it away in time for her to complete the mission.

While Naru was in the bathroom trying to sort out her problems with Kyuubi, Kakashi was trying to save what was left of his dignity. Jiraiya had forced him to remove his mask, which he did begrudgingly. His eyes lingered on the kimono in disgust before allowing Jiraiya to pull him over to a small vanity sink outside the bathroom. His hair was the first thing they would have to take care of. Jiraiya turned on the faucet and shoved Kakashi's head underneath the flow. The younger boy struggled against Jiraiya's hold before going limp and allowing the man to do as he pleased. While Kakashi's head was underneath the water, Jiraiya grabbed a towel from the cabinet below the sink and turned off the water. Kakashi let his hair drip down his face and into the sink as Jiraiya wrapped his soaking hair into the towel. When he removed the towel, Kakashi's hair was water logged and falling down around his ears. Since Kakashi's hair was longer in the front, Jiraiya had to pull back the longer locks to meet the shorter locks in the back. Kakashi waited patiently as Jiraiya tugged and tied his hair. How he did it Kakashi still wasn't sure, but with the gel in his hand and a can of hairspray, Jiraiya pulled his silver locks back into a tight bun. Not a single strand was out of place, but it was stiff. Kakashi reached up and touched his hair with a finger only to get his hand smacked by Jiraiya.

"Brat, it took a can of hairspray and a bottle of gel to get it slicked back like that. Don't mess it up. As long as you stay away from water and humidity, you should be fine. All that should hold 'til you get through with the mission."

Jiraiya then grabbed a couple of senbon from his bag and looped a couple of strings of plum blossoms around them. He stuck them into the bun and arranged the strings so they were hanging down around the silver bun. The senbon was just an extra precaution. If Kakashi couldn't reach the weapons on his juban, then he could always use the senbon. Jiraiya stepped back and grinned at his handiwork. If all else failed, he could always quit being a shinobi and become a hairdresser. Jiraiya giggled to himself before mentally reminding himself to write down this scene in his notebook for his future book. After he finished the one he was working on, he was going to switch genres and try writing adult literature. His mind was already going crazy over a potential scene between his cross-dressing main character and his female lover. Kakashi's impatient foot tapping brought Jiraiya out of his thoughts and back to the matter at hand. He walked over to the bed and picked up the white juban.

Kakashi sighed before moving to take the juban from Jiraiya. Since Kakashi was going undercover as a girl, he would have to wear the complete outfit, including the undergarments. The juban was really nothing more than a glorified cotton shirt and skirt, but it would help Kakashi's cause. Since Naru was down, it fell on Kakashi to attract and eliminate the target. Kakashi would need to stash weapons within the juban so they wouldn't be seen easily. Jiraiya handed over the white tabi socks and watched as Kakashi tried to bend over without tilting his head. It wasn't working at all for the boy. Jiraiya could have stifled down his laughter, but he couldn't and ended up getting a heated glare from the Hatake.

"Try sitting on the bed and putting them on. You might find it easier."

"I've got it."

"You don't look like you've got it."

Kakashi glared again before doing as Jiraiya said and sitting on the bed. It went a whole lot easier that time around, but he'd never admit that to the pervert.

His next garment was to put on the kimono itself. Kakashi had to admit that whoever picked the kimono out had good taste, even if he didn't like wearing it. It was a very soft peach color at the top, around the collar, and descended down the material into a dark red color. It was the perfect example of the sky at dusk. Across the bottom and sleeves of the kimono, white plum blossoms twirled around in an invisible wind. It was pretty, but it was girly. It was long too. Kakashi had a good foot of material left over after Jiraiya put it on him correctly. When he asked the older man about it, he was told that everything would work out in the end and to hush so he could concentrate.

Jiraiya looked Kakashi over before sighing and beginning to tie the obi. Obi tying was the most difficult part of the entire process because it's not simply one belt. There are actually many belts involved in the process. Jiraiya began by gathering all of the extra material into his hand and making Kakashi hold onto it at about waist level. He then grabbed the koshi-himo belt and belted it below the extra material. Kakashi had to grab the back of a chair to keep from falling over as Jiraiya began tugging and straightening the extra material 'til it was perfectly straight and smooth. Jiraiya covered the belt with the extra material before going on to grab the final belt, the date-jime belt. He wrapped it around Kakashi's waist and tied it in the front, with the overlapping fabric below it.

Kakashi sighed happily as Jiraiya stepped away and looked him over once more before giving him the green light. "Your body fits the kimono and your hair actually looks like a girl's. I'm glad you didn't get it cut before this mission or we would have been in trouble."

Naru walked into the room looking a little better and stared at Kakashi, who frowned at her. "It's rude to stare."

"I know, but you're so pretty scarecrow!"

Kakashi glared before mumbling under his breath that he 'wasn't pretty.' Once Kakashi got over his pouting, he turned to Naru and looked at her sadly. She was sitting on the bed with a wet rag over her eyes. He tried to walk over, but found it hard to move in the kimono. He had to take small, quick steps if he wanted to get to Naru. "How ya feeling?"

She shrugged, "I'm better, but still not good. I just want to sleep this away."

"I'm sorry."

"Not your fault. I should have known better than to eat something without smelling it first, but that girl was so pathetic that I didn't want to make her even more nervous than she already was."

Kakashi grinned at Naru, "You and that heart of gold. It keeps getting you in trouble."

Naru shrugged, "Oh well, it hasn't killed me yet."

"Are you two done flirting? 'Cause Kakashi has to practice walking in these sandals."

Kakashi almost whimpered as he saw the geta sandals in Jiraiya's hands. Naru, though, was too busy blushing at Jiraiya's question to do anything. "Do I have to?"

"Yep. Come on, slip them on and try walking in them. It takes perfect balance, but once you get used to them, you'll be walking in them like a pro."

Kakashi slipped the geta sandals on and wobbled a little before taking a step. "I doubt that." He walked a couple of more shaky steps before wobbling forward a little. He straightened himself before grinning and walking around with more confident steps. "This is easier than it looks." Kakashi took a few more strides before catching the corner of his geta sandal on one of the futons and crumpling to the floor. Jiraiya and Naru both erupted into laughter as Kakashi shot up quickly with a bright blush running across the top of his cheeks. "It's not that funny."

Jiraiya stopped laughing and looked Kakashi over for the final time. "Now, what's your alias going to be?"

Kakashi shrugged before thinking back to his Academy days and trying to pick a name from one of his classmates. "Kisa, I'll use the name Kisa."

Jiraiya nodded in agreement before sighing and looking at Naru. She looked tons better, but she wasn't going to be able to do much. "We've got to rework our plan. Minato would kill me if I left Naru here by herself, especially considering she's so sick. Kakashi, you'll go escorted by one of my clones, which will disappear after you're there safely. Find your dad, because he'll need to investigate those papers in the bedroom across from Ishikawa's room since I can't do it. Get in, complete the mission, and get out. I'll stay here with Naru." Kakashi scowled as Jiraiya straighten the senbon in his hair. "Another thing, make sure you always keep a smile on. A scowling little girl isn't that pretty. You catch more flies with honey than you do with vinegar, so come on Kisa-chan and give me a smile." Kakashi raised an eyebrow at Jiraiya, but didn't make a move to smile. Jiraiya poked Kakashi hard in the side and pouted at him. "Come on Kisa-chan, give me a smile. Please."

Kakashi rolled his eyes, but eventually gave Jiraiya the smile he was looking for. Jiraiya returned it before poking Kakashi in the cheek, "You have your mother's dimples. All that cuteness was such a waste on a boy, you should have been a girl."

Kakashi's glare returned with full force as he kicked Jiraiya hard in the shin. Jiraiya clutched his shin, but laughed hard at the light pink blush racing across Kakashi's cheeks. "Let's get this over with so I can forget about this entire day!"

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I left my ego somewhere underneath the futon back at the inn and my dignity was hanging on by a thread. Though, as I walked holding onto Jiraiya's clone's arm, I could feel the last of my dignity withering away. My only saving grace was that no one else could see me. I would have died if I would have run into someone I knew. Though, even if I did, I doubt they would recognize me. I didn't even recognize myself. I shamefully had to admit that I looked like a silver haired little girl. I didn't like it one bit, but what could I do? Naru couldn't complete the mission and Ishikawa needed to be taken care of. I had no choice.

We arrived at the old government building and the clone escorted me in. Many people were already mingling around and chatting excessively as they stuffed their faces with delicacies from Kusa and Iwa. I stuck to walking around the outer wall; the clone had excused himself to the bathroom so he could disappear. My current job was to look for Dad and update him on everything that had happened this afternoon. Suddenly, a hand lay on my shoulder and turned me around slightly. I sighed in relief when I saw it was Dad in his henge. He looked around a couple of times before 'escorting' me to the nearest bathroom. Luckily, it was unoccupied.

He locked the door before turning around and whispering. "Kakashi? Son, what's going on?"

I sighed and squirmed in the kimono. I was trying to fight down a monster blush as Dad looked me over with a mesmerized look in his eye. It made me wonder how Dad felt about his cross-dressing son. "Naru got sick and I had to take her place. Jiraiya can't come either because he's staying with Naru, so you've got to investigate the other room."

Dad nodded his head and rubbed his temples in frustration. "Okay, this just complicates things further. Ishikawa is here, but she's not downstairs yet. I'll give you a signal when she comes down, 'til then, stay in the banquet, but out of the spotlight." I nodded and began to walk out of the bathroom; these geta sandals were getting on my nerves big time. Dad stopped me, though, before I left the room, "Oh, and Kakashi? That kimono suits you. Takes a real man to wear pink."

I grinned at him, Dad didn't know it, but he just made my 'awesome list.' I shook my head in laughter before walking back into the bustle of the banquet. With just a bunch of politicians and few shinobi, it was boring as Hell. I did take the time to listen for information, eavesdropping whenever I could. It wasn't like anybody noticed the sliver haired little girl listening quietly beside them.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

"Hey Jiraiya, why didn't you make Kakashi henge his hair?"

Jiraiya blinked before looking over at me. I was still laid out, but I wasn't vomiting. Which was such a good feeling. "Well, silver hair is rare, but not unheard of. There are quite a few families in Iwa that have silver hair. Plus, I was already asking him to put on the kimono and take off his mask, so I figured asking him to henge his hair into strawberry pink wasn't something that would have gone over very well. He may not have the same charm as you've got, but he's interesting enough as a girl."

"Oh."

We were quiet for a few more minutes. I didn't really know what to say with Jiraiya. I wanted to beat his head in for being a jerk, but I couldn't help remembering our time together during our training trip. He may have not been the best teacher, but he had been there for me. I just wished my presence wouldn't have ruined his relationship with Dad. Perhaps it was still salvageable.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

Dad came sweeping around the room a little while later. He bent down to my level and handed me a glass of water before pointing me towards the door that led upstairs. I knew that was a sign Ishikawa was coming downstairs and, sure enough, the door opened to reveal a shorter woman in a green kimono with crashing waves across the skirt of it. She was immediately swarmed by many of the other guests and, if the look on her face was any indication, she was annoyed with them all. That's when I figured out how I was going to catch her attention; I was going to distract the crowd.

I walked over and quietly listened to their pathetic attempts to gain her attention. I reached over and tugged the kimono of one of the men trying to talk his way over to Ishikawa. He looked down at me and smiled sweetly. I wanted to gag as I coughed lightly to clear my throat and spoke in the gentlest voice I could manage. "Papa told me that Ishikawa always uses a clone so she can be in the crowd without being bothered."

"Really now?"

I nodded and pointed vaguely to the main floor. "Papa said she always henges into a random guest so she can enjoy the party while the clone is swamped by other people. Look at her, notice how she's not really interested and looks like she'd rather die than be here. That's just how clones react to being used as bait."

The man looked like I had revealed the secret of life to him. I was just glad the man wasn't a shinobi and didn't understand the first thing about clones. I didn't need him to understand, though, all I needed him to do was stir up the crowd for me. The man began searching with his eyes before tugging his friend away from the others to search more thoroughly. They began searching the room and slowly drew attention away from Ishikawa. Most people are naturally curious and in a crowd-type setting, if a couple of people seemed to be looking for something, others would eventually start looking too. It only took a few minutes for the other people around Ishikawa to notice the searching males before they too were searching with them.

Ishikawa looked impressed as the last of her admirers left her side. She grinned before walking over and lightly patting my shoulder. "That was one of the most brilliant uses of crowd psychology I've seen in a long time. The simple fact that you were manipulative enough to get the first two looking set off the 'searching fever,' which then was able to draw everyone else away was brilliant. I'm impressed. The name's Ishikawa no Iwa, but you may call me Hoshi."

I bowed to her and gave her my name. "It's an honor to be recognized by you, I'm Kisa."

Ishikawa, or Hoshi as she now wanted to be called, grabbed my hand and placed it at the crook of her arm. She smoothly glided around the banquet guests and led me into a less populated area of the room. "Kisa, why don't you tell me about yourself? Where are you from?"

I blinked before trying to recall everything Naru had been memorizing for her character. I put a little flair on it and just winged it. Hoshi wouldn't remember the correct information anyway. "I'm from a little manufacturing community on the outskirts of Rokku. My mother was a kunoichi and my father was the owner of multiple factories along the border of Rokku. It was on their request that I attend this banquet, even though I personally hate these things." I knew I had Hoshi's attention then. She leaned her ear forward as I reached up the massage my forehead in an act of mock frustration. "All of these stuck-up nobodies only want fame and wealth. No one thinks about the good of the village anymore. I would rather be anywhere than here."

Hoshi grinned and nodded enthusiastically, "Agreed on all counts, Kisa. I'm tired of everyone being around me because they think they can get something. I'm tired of being expected to choose an apprentice from some ancient family, when I could easily train a street whore's daughter into a grand shinobi and strategist." Hoshi smiled sadly before patting my hand again, "Sorry, I shouldn't place my troubles on you. How would you like to join me for tea later?"

I removed my hand from her arm and bowed, "It would be an honor, Hoshi-san."

"Excellent, I'll have a servant show you up to the room." She reached over to the closest servant, who just so happened to be Dad and whispered into his ear. He nodded before offering his arm to me. I took it and made sure to look behind me at Hoshi as she began talking to another kunoichi from Iwa. Dad patted my arm and whispered 'good job' before leading the way into Hoshi's room. He wished me luck and headed into the room across the hall. I figured he would go on and look while he was up here.

I walked into the room and sat down on one of the cushions beside the low table. I waited for a few minutes before scouting out the room. There was one large window opposite me and a large bed behind me. One door, which meant only one entrance and two exits, the door and the window. I would most likely be taking the window. The door opened to reveal a maid carrying a kettle of hot tea. She smiled softly at me before placing the kettle on the table and bowing. She left me alone with the tea. I reached into my kimono and deep into the juban to touch the pouch I had tied securely around my body. Inside were a couple of spare exploding tags, some standard medicine, a few poisons, and a chemical powder that would imitate sudden illness in the body. It was Orochimaru's newest invention and fresh from Konoha. I only had it because Jiraiya had discreetly given it to me to test out before leaving Zing's house. It wasn't deadly, but it would throw off homeostasis in the body. If that internal balance were disturbed then it would affect Hoshi greatly 'til her body could correct the problem. All I needed was a few minutes of confusion or dizziness to complete my mission.

I listen carefully for footsteps and checked for all traces of chakra before pulling the pouch out quickly and picking up the white powder. It was odorless and tasteless, but it would be visible 'til it dissolved. Which is why putting it in tea would work because the white powder would blend in with the slight white foam that boiling tea produced. I didn't know how much to put, so I emptied half of the small bag into the kettle. I would have to make sure not to drink any of the tea or I would be in the same boat as Hoshi. I quickly swirled the kettle around and tucked everything back into my juban. Just as I was straightening up my collar, the door opened to reveal a very irate Hoshi storming into the room.

"Those idiots! They know nothing about my job and know nothing about me! I refuse to take one of those prissy little girls. They wouldn't late five seconds with me."

I decided to play peacemaker and get her calmed before she ruined my chances of completing the mission with relative ease. "Calm down Hoshi-san. Those elites and bigwigs downstairs can't tell you what to do. Last time I checked, they weren't the Tsuchikage. They're unimportant and useless. Take an apprentice when you want to, not when they want you to."

She continued fuming for a few more minutes before taking a couple of deep breaths and smiling warmly at me. "For one so young, you're very wise. Wise and also very good at reading people. You either know everything about me or just have an excellent eye for body language and emotions. Even then, there's something off about you, Kisa. I can't put my finger on it, but something is off. Not an assassin in disguise are you?" She winked at me before coming to sit on the cushion on the opposite side of the table.

I shook my head and felt the plum blossoms hit against the side of my hair. "Of course not. I'm thrilled that you think so highly of my abilities. I couldn't pull off an assassination if my life depended on it, especially not one so high-classed and dangerous. It would take skill to get close enough to kill you Ishikawa no Iwa."

Hoshi grinned again and poured us a cup of tea. She quickly downed her first cup and continued on to the second one. I slowly pretended to sip mine. "No, all it would take was extreme luck and a few ignorant guards. No one thinks Konoha has the balls to come into Iwa controlled Kusagakure, but I figure it's just a matter of time before they try it."

I nodded in agreement and mentally smirked at her. I couldn't wait to see her reaction when she realized everything she said was correct. Konoha was more than ready to take her out. All I had to do was wait for the powder to take. A few minutes later, Hoshi began sniffling slightly. She reached up and rubbed her throat and massaged her temples. She blinked rapidly before sighing and standing to her feet. She stumbled a little and I quickly got up to assist her. "Hoshi? Are you okay?"

She shook her head, "I've been fighting a cold all week. It must have finally caught up with me. I'm sorry to cut this meeting short, but I need to lie down. Help me to the bed, please Kisa."

I nodded and helped the shaking woman to the bed. She laid down, but instead of leaving, I grabbed a wet rag from the sink for her forehead. She thanked me and laid back down. I watched her for a couple of minutes 'til her body relaxed on the bed. I walked out to the hall and quietly informed the maid that Ishikawa was sick and requested to not be disturbed 'til morning. That would buy us some time to get out before they notice something was wrong. The maid nodded and asked if there was anything she could bring the woman. I told her 'no' and reentered Ishikawa's room. She was still lying on the bed with her eyes closed. I quietly locked the door behind me and turned out the main light in the room. Only the small glow from the bedside lamp filled the room.

Sweat glistened on Ishikawa's neck and cheeks. A healthy blush raced across her cheeks as her body tried to stabilize itself and fight off the foreign substance ingested into her body. I removed the kunai hooked onto my juban and removed the cloth covering around the sharpened end. She opened her eyes, but they were dilated and unfocused. She looked confused as I walked closer to her with my kunai behind my back.

"K-kisa?"

I shook my head and placed the kunai at her neck. Her body tensed as the cool metal touched heated flesh. I dug the point deep into her neck and watched as the blood began its journey down her neck to pool around the collar of her kimono. Realization settled into her eyes as I quickly dug the kunai into her neck and sliced across. Blood gurgled from the wound and from her mouth as she tried to reach for a weapon in her last few seconds of life. I shook my head again and pulled her arm back to her side. I watched in morbid fascination as the light left her eyes and became dull and glassy. She was gone and my job was complete.

I lifted up the window and slowly climbed down the wall with my chakra. I pulled off the geta sandals as soon as I landed and ran through the back alleys of Zassou in just my white tabi socks. I couldn't shake the feeling of paranoia that I was somehow going to be found out. As I ran, I quickly plucked the senbon out of my hair and tossed the decorations into the nearest dumpster. When I arrived at the hotel, I ran to the window and jumped in. Jiraiya let out a deep sigh of relief as did Naru. They both ushered me into the bathroom so I could remove the evidence of my mission. It was going to take forever to get my hair to fall back right.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo watched Kakashi walk into Ishikawa's room with a churning sensation in his stomach. He couldn't stand knowing that his son wanted to be an assassin. Out of all of the divisions in the shinobi world his son could have picked, he had to pick the toughest one. Sakumo sighed again and quietly walked across the hall and into the room. It was unlocked, but that didn't mean he had to relax his guard. He walked around the room and searched quietly in the cabinets and drawers in the desk. Suddenly, voices began getting closer to the door. Sakumo's eyes widened and he quickly looked for a place to hide.

His frantic searching brought him to the closet. He ducked into the closet just as the door opened to reveal a man and a woman. The woman was highly intoxicated while the man was gradually letting his hand sink lower and lower across the woman's back. Sakumo rolled his eyes as he watched the man openly grope the intoxicated woman as she bent over the desk to retrieve a paper.

"This is the inventory paperwork for last month's equipment check. I've also got the-the," she giggled to herself as the man kissed alongside her neck, "Sir, this is inappropriate! Now, I've also got the newest supply line orders. All right here."

The man grunted before pulling her close to him. "Let's go talk about something other than business."

Sakumo waited as the man and woman left the room stumbling the entire time. Once the coast was clear, he walked out and began searching through the papers on the desk. His eyes widened as he looked at the supply lines that ran all along Ame and Kusa, as well as a few small notes concerning Sunagakure. Nothing huge, but every little bit helped.

He sighed deeply before beginning to walk toward the door. As he stood by the door, he heard Kakashi talk to a maid and reenter Ishikawa's room. A few minutes later Sakumo started downstairs and returned to the banquet. He waited 'til everyone's attention was on the host of the party before disappearing through one of the side doors.

Sakumo took the main roadway away from the old government building, instead of taking the back alleys. When he finally made it back to the room, Kakashi was sitting on the bed furiously drying his hair with a towel. Sakumo grinned as he watched Kakashi remove the towel to inspect his hair and growl in frustration when he found it still stiff. Jiraiya was getting his pack ready and stuffing the kimono into a scroll. Naru was sitting on the bed and watching everything with a tired eye. He went to Naru first and patted her back.

"Feeling better?"

She nodded, "I hate that I messed up the mission for everybody, but I couldn't help it."

Sakumo waved it off, "Don't worry about it. Mission's complete and that's all that matters."

Naru smiled brightly, "Well, you better get ready Sensei. We're leaving as soon as everyone is ready."

Sakumo nodded and went into the bathroom to change his clothes back into the thick robes. They left in the dead of the night and were back in the small town on the border of Fire Country before noon the next day. Since they stayed to the back roads and dark forests, they left Kusagakure without much hassle. Once they were away from Zassou, Sakumo, in full henge, started fishing around for rumors surrounding Ishikawa. Iwa was in a state of panic, Ishikawa was found dead in her room the morning following Iwa's celebratory banquet. No one knew who killed her, only that a maid claimed a young girl was the last one with Ishikawa before she died. Konoha was a major suspect.

Once they were back in Fire Country borders, Jiraiya sent off the mission report to the Third and called a meeting between Naru, Minato, Kakashi and Sakumo. This was the meeting where he would inform the team of their deployment changes.

"I've got some good news and some bad news. Which do you want to hear first?"

Sakumo shrugged, "Why not tell us the good."

Jiraiya nodded, "The Third was highly impressed with the success of operation 'Tunnel Rats' and is optimistic about other operations occurring across Ame."

Naru grinned, "So what's the bad news?"

"You and Kakashi won't be included in those operations 'til much later."

Both chunin blinked in surprise, before voicing their confusion at the same time. "What?"

Jiraiya sighed, "The Third wants you two to start getting your specialization training. Kakashi, you want to be do assassinations and Naru, you want to do demolition. So the Hokage has decided that now is a great time to start your training."

Minato watched as Naru mentally chewed over this newest information. "Okay, why is that bad news?"

"He wants you and Kakashi separated to receive this training."

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

"He wants you and Kakashi separated to receive this training."

I quickly looked over at Kakashi in disbelief. His visible expression mirrored mine. We hadn't been separated in over two years. This would throw everything off. Two years of being together and knowing the other is right beside you in battle isn't something that can be turned off overnight. We needed each other.

"Why does the Third want us to separate? Doesn't he know how well we work together?"

Jiraiya nodded at my question. "He knows Naru, he knows. He also knows how dangerous it will be if the enemy figures out how dependent you two are on each other. This is only for your own good."

Sakumo-sensei massaged his forehead in frustration, "How are they separating them?"

"Kakashi will go with Minato for his training and Naru will stay with you and me for hers. The training will last anywhere from half-a-year to a full year."

Sensei blinked, "We won't see each other for an entire year?"

Minato nodded, "Hard to swallow isn't it?"

"Tell me 'bout it."

Jiraiya grinned, "They're both going to be fine." He reached into his jacket and pulled out another scroll, which he handed to Sensei. "This is your mission report."

Sensei opened the scroll and read over it. He looked up, "What about our squads?"

"Ronin will take care of yours Sakumo and Jiro will take charge of Minato's. You two are the only ones that can spearhead these missions."

Sensei sighed, "Fine, we'll do it."

I felt my heart drop into my stomach. They weren't even going to ask our opinions. Kakashi reached over and squeezed my hand while the adults started talking amongst themselves quietly. "We'll be fine, don't worry."

I squeezed back, but I wasn't comforted. Mentally I cursed Sarutobi and hoped he understood how complicated he just made our lives.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sarutobi Hiruzen sneezed violently as he leaned over his desk and scattered the many papers into the air. He looked at the fluttering pages and fell back into his chair taking that as his cue for a break. He couldn't shake the ominous feeling settling over him. Something told him that someone wasn't too happy with him at that moment. He had a sneaking suspicion it was a little blonde haired girl who just found out about her newest orders.


	32. Part 2: Chapter 3

**Part 2: Chapter 3**

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

"Dad, do you think it's too soon?"

Sarutobi Hiruzen, Konoha's most composed and strongest shinobi, stared completely flabbergasted at the small box in his eldest son's hands. Suddenly the hands seemed too young and tiny to hold the box that would change the rest of his life forever. Marriage was a huge step in any relationship, but Hiruzen couldn't deny the strength of Katsu's feelings for the Iwagakure refugee. He saw the way Katsu looked at her and the way she looked back, looks of pure love. The elder man also saw the way Katsu treated Mozuku, Ami's two-year-old little boy, like he would a son. The fact that Mozuku was some Iwagakure shinobi's son didn't matter to Katsu. He loved the boy like he was his own.

The Third Hokage knew it wasn't too soon for Katsu and Ami to get married. They were plenty old and mature enough. Katsu could definitely provide for a growing family, so there was no need to worry about his son and bride-to-be. It was just strange for the father to think of his son marrying. Katsu was his eldest child and Hiruzen could still remember holding the boy in his arms for the first time and the pure innocence that shown from the infant's eyes. The Third didn't know if he was ready for his son to grow up fully. Instead of voicing his unwillingness to let go, he smiled and pulled his son into a hug. Every baby bird eventually had to leave the nest.

"Not at all. You really love Ami and I can see that when you look at her. I'm very happy and proud of you. Happy because you found love and proud because you're willing to overlook everything in order to love her. I wish both of you the best of luck."

Katsu hugged his father harder before pulling away, "I'm asking her tonight at the _Falling Leaf_. It was where we had our first lunch and everything, so I figured it would be fitting. Will you and Mom be able to make it? Mozuku's going to be there, so I figured it would be more meaningful if we made this a family thing. And could you do me a favor and ask Asuma to come?"

The Third nodded, "Of course, we wouldn't miss this for the world, but are you sure you don't want it to be just between you and Ami?"

Katsu shook his head and grinned, "Ami said the one thing she admired most about our family was our closeness and she would want everyone to be there." The boy looked away before meeting his Dad's eyes again, "Just make sure you talk to Asuma personally and tell him I really want him there."

"Katsu, I'm sure he'll jump at the chance to come."

Katsu didn't seem so sure. He frowned before looking away and sighing, "Dad, I know you've been distant for the past few months because of the war, but there is no way you missed Asuma's mood swings."

The Hokage blinked in surprise, before looking at the wall, slightly ashamed. Truth be told, he hadn't seen Asuma in almost two months. It wasn't that he didn't want to spend time with his youngest son, but he just didn't have the time. The war was keeping him away from home, and whenever he was at home he was usually sleeping to prepare for the next day. His eldest child and wife were used to it, but apparently Asuma wasn't. Hiruzen knew that was partly his fault. Before the war he used to go out of his way to spend time with Asuma, but now he was older and not as energetic as he used to be. He now had to make time just to sleep and eat, leaving no time to spend with his ten-year-old son.

Katsu looked down at the ground before sighing, "I don't think he's over you missing his graduation ceremony and I know he doesn't like the idea of me and Ami together. He's voiced his negative opinions on our relationship many times. I want to say it's just him being jealous of Ami, but I'm worried that it's something else."

In the older man's defense, he didn't mean to miss Asuma's graduation ceremony last year, but an urgent report came in from the front and he had to answer it. Now that the Hokage thought about it, his son hadn't seriously spoken to him since that missed ceremony. He closed his eyes in understanding, Asuma was still hurting apparently. Hiruzen didn't even want to think about the implications of Asuma's dislike of Ami. There was no justification of it, she was really a sweet girl and loved Katsu with all of her heart. The Third agreed with his oldest son, Asuma must be jealous of the girl stealing his brother away.

"I'll talk to him later. His genin team has a mission today and when they're done I'll call him in here so we can talk."

Katsu nodded, "Dad, just try not to mention that I said anything to you. He wouldn't want me to say anything."

The Third Hokage sighed deeply before rubbing a hand across his eyes. He didn't know what he was going to do with his youngest son. Asuma was their surprise baby, unplanned, but definitely not unwanted. His birth had taken the entire family by surprise; what his wife thought was the early stages of menopause ended up being Asuma. The Third was ecstatic after learning his wife was pregnant again, because he was finally going to get to spend the time with his new son that he didn't get to spend with Katsu because of the Second Shinobi War. For so long Asuma had been the baby of the family, the one everybody doted on and cared for. The one he used to tuck into bed every night so they could have their special time together after a long day at the office.

Katsu had been fourteen when Asuma was born and Hiruzen could remember his teenage son exploiting his baby brother to get dates with some of the girls in the village. Asuma and Katsu had always been close, regardless of the years between them, and to hear that Asuma wasn't reacting kindly to Ami was upsetting to the eldest Sarutobi boy. Hiruzen hated to think that something that was supposed to be a joyous occasion was causing so much strife for his family.

"I'll talk to him Katsu. Just go get ready for your big night and we'll see you then."

"Thanks Dad, I owe you one. See you guys tonight about seven."

The Third watched his son leave with a slight skip in his step before walking out to the mission's desk to leave the message for Asuma. Secretly hoping he would be finished with all of his work before Asuma got the message. Hiruzen had a very busy day ahead of him. Today was the Academy's graduation exams and the Third always tried to watch them while holding the mandatory meeting with the potential jounin-senseis. It was a nice change of pace from the constant drain of war related work and also gave the jounin a chance to see their future students in action. The jounin were already waiting in the meeting room for their Hokage and many were anxiously waiting to see the newest genin hopefuls.

The Hokage was on his way to the meeting room when he saw Umino Kita walking down the hall dragging her little boy behind her. There was slight annoyance on her face, but also a twinge of pride there too. She stopped and bowed when she saw the Hokage before motioning for Iruka to do the same. The Third smiled happily at the two before noticing the purple shiner around Iruka's right eye. He couldn't help but wonder what the six-year-old little boy had gotten into. He kneeled down to Iruka's level and lifted the boy's chin to look at the black eye.

"Iruka-kun, what happened to your eye?"

Iruka blushed heavily and nervously rubbed the scar across his nose. "I got into a fight Hokage-sama at the Academy."

Kita sighed heavily before continuing, "Broke one of his classmates nose in the process too."

Iruka blushed heavier as the elder man laughed, "Now Iruka, why did you hit your classmate? He's your future comrade-in-arms and should be treated with the same respect as one. It's not very good for Konoha if her shinobi are going around giving each other black eyes and broken noses."

"Well, he made fun of my name. He called me 'dolphin' and said I should go back to the water because dolphins aren't tough enough to be shinobi. So I punched him in the nose."

Kita hid a snicker as the Hokage smiled at the boy, "Ahh, so someone was teasing you. You know, I was teased when I was younger too."

Iruka's eyes widened, "Really Hokage-sama?"

The Third nodded and grinned, "Part of my name means 'monkey' and with my summons being monkeys themselves, I was teased a lot as a younger boy. I didn't let it bother me and you shouldn't either. One day the other boy will be glad he had a dolphin fighting on his side."

Iruka smiled brightly and grasped his mother's hand. "Thank you Hokage-sama."

"The pleasure was mine Iruka-kun." Hiruzen looked up at Kita and smiled, "Are you going to be able to make it to the meeting in a few minutes?"

Kita nodded, "I'm just going to drop Iruka off with Shima and then I'll be there. They sent both boys home as punishment so Shima said he'd take him while I'm in the meeting."

The Hokage nodded and waved 'bye' as Kita picked Iruka up and disappeared in a puff of smoke. He smiled to himself as he walked further down the hall and into the meeting room where a few of the jounin were already gathered. His crystal ball was already set up in the room and waiting for them to spy on the genin hopefuls.

* * *

Kita made her way into the T&I building with Iruka in her arms. She knew her son was a soft hearted individual, but she was glad that he was showing signs of being able to protect himself. Both her and her husband constantly worried about Iruka being too kind and open to be a shinobi. His latest stunt was proving their worries wrong though.

Kita smiled to herself before tightening her hold around Iruka. He was growing up fast, faster than she liked. She placed him on the ground before leading him up the stairs and into the hall where Shima's office was. Being head of the T&I department, Shima had a very nice office in the front of the building. She knocked twice before walking into the office. Iruka let out a joyous yelp before running over to Shima.

"Daddy!"

"Hey kiddo. Come sit with me."

Iruka climbed into Shima's lap and immediately began shuffling through the drawer in front of him. Shima carefully removed the kunai from the desk drawer before Iruka could get his hands on it. They really didn't need another trip to the hospital for Iruka to get stitches. While Iruka was distracted, Shima winked at Kita and motioned for her to come closer. He had missed her. With him dividing his time between the prisoner of war camp and the T&I department, he rarely had time to just be with his wife. She rolled her eyes playfully before walking over and leaning down towards him level. Shima grinned as he gently grabbed her chin and pulled her closer before firmly kissing her lips. Kita was lost in the sensation and closed her eyes, reveling in her husband's warmth and scent. The hand that wasn't holding her chin reached behind her and teasingly pinched her rear. Kita's closed eyes snapped open as she yelped and jumped away from Shima. Iruka looked over at his mother with worried eyes.

"Mom? Something wrong?"

Kita's blush matched the one Iruka had earlier as she shook her head and glared at her snickering husband. She finally calmed herself down long enough to roughly thump Shima's ear. Shima hissed in pain as Kita smiled triumphantly. "Well, I've got a meeting. I'll see you two later."

"Bye Momma!"

"Bye sweetheart."

Kita hurriedly ran through the hand seals and disappeared in a puff of smoke. She reappeared outside the meeting room just in time to hear the Hokage's opening speech for the meeting.

"Today we are going to preview what the students are capable of. Before this meeting ends, everyone in here will know who their future students are and receive their files. There are a few changes from last year. This year everyone that passes the Academy test will be placed on a genin team and given the rank of genin. Unless the jounin-sensei completely believes the student should not be a shinobi, then regardless of the outcome on the jounin-sensei test, they will become genin. Konoha needs shinobi too badly to be as selective as we have been in the past."

The jounin nodded in understanding. Kita, though, raised her hand. "Hokage-sama, as badly as we need shinobi, isn't a little unwise to waste time training students that don't possess the skills needed to rise in rank."

The Hokage nodded, "Normally I would agree, but even genin can help us with the war cause. We're sending more chunin and jounin into the field, leaving behind genin and a few ANBU to defend Konoha. Genin may not be technically as strong as a jounin, but in numbers they can take down even the strongest jounin."

Kita nodded, but still didn't look convinced. Another jounin nudged her to look as the crystal ball glowed before showing one of the Academy classrooms. The Third grinned, before motioning for the ten or so jounin to gather around the ball. They watched with silent fascination as the scene played out.

* * *

A black haired boy with orange tinted goggles stood in the front of the large classroom. The other children were snickering quietly to themselves as the sensei stood in front of the boy. The sensei's eyes and forehead were pinched together in frustration as he tried to speak around his gritted teeth. "Obito-kun, tell me again why you were late."

Obito took a rather large breath and placed his hands on his hips. "Sensei, I woke up extra early this morning so I wouldn't be late today. Well, while I was in the kitchen cooking a surprise breakfast for my parents, my obaasan came walking by our house struggling with a huge bag of groceries. Being a future shinobi of Konoha, I couldn't just let her carry the groceries by herself. I stopped everything I was doing so I could help her. I took her groceries all the way to her house on top of the big hill in the Uchiha district before running back home, only to discover I had left the stove burning. Smoke was billowing from the kitchen, so I had to run in and move the burning food from the stove. While I was doing that, I accidently burned my mom's favorite curtains. I couldn't have her finding out about it, so I raced to the market and found some similar ones. By the time I put those curtains up and got all the smoke out of the house, it was time for me to head here. I was just leaving my front steps when I tripped on the bottom step and fell into the mud outside the house. Now, I couldn't show up on the day of my genin exam in muddy clothes, so I had to take a shower. After I finished that, I was finally able to get out the door and tried to get here as fast as I could."

The man sighed deeply and pinched the bridge of his nose with his thumb and forefinger. "Okay Obito, just sit down and wait for your name to be called."

Obito nodded and made a beeline for his seat on the fifth row. He sat down and began looking around him before finding the girl he was looking for. Rin, his crush, and hopefully future teammate. She smiled at him, making the purple rectangles on her face move up with her cheeks. A blush raced across his own cheeks before his attention was brought back to the sensei in the front of the room.

"Today is your final exam while at the Academy. It is divided into five different parts and all you need is passing grades in three out of the five to pass. If you pass here, then you're on your way to becoming great protectors of the village. I wish you all luck and hope that you paid attention during your time here. Good luck future shinobi of Konoha."

A chorus of 'yes' rang around Obito as the protractors began handing out the written portion of the exam. The Uchiha was sweating as his exam was given to him. Those of the Uchiha clan were supposed to be great minds and even greater fighters, but Obito wasn't exactly a favored son of the clan. His antics and grades had earned him the nickname as the 'black sheep' of the Uchiha clan. It was a shunning that Obito hated with every fiber of his being. He hated being the one they discussed in quiet conversations while they thought he wasn't listening. Obito's grip increased on the pencil he was holding, he would prove them all wrong. He would become a great shinobi, greater than that of the Hokage, and make a new path of the ninja. One that wasn't dependent on talent or name, one that was dependent on determination and passion. A fire burned bright in Obito as he began scanning the paper and taking this exam as serious as he could. He only wished he had studied for it.

A few seats down from Obito, another brown haired boy was patiently scribbling his answers on the paper with a calm poise. He wasn't looking nervous like many of his fellow classmates, nor was he repeatedly striking his pencil against the desk, instead he was taking his time. The boy, Morino Ibiki, wasn't the strongest fighter or mind, but his senseis had already acknowledged he had a potential future in T&I if he wanted to go that route. Ibiki didn't let their compliments faze him, he was too busy trying to live up to his father's standards and become a great shinobi.

A row down from Ibiki, a smaller boy with long brown hair painstakingly scribbled his answers across his paper. He was at least a year younger than most of the other wannabe genin, but that didn't mean his test was any easier. Kamizuki Izumo had signed up for the Academy early with his best friend and constant companion, Hagane Kotetsu. Said spiky black haired boy was sitting to his right doodling across his paper instead of answering the questions. Izumo threw his friend a look that was answered by Kotetsu with a shrug. Kotetsu turned his paper over and wrote across the back of the exam.

 _I only have to pass three of the five. So why try on something I know I'm not going to pass?_

Izumo shook his head at his friend before continuing his test. He just hoped his knuckleheaded friend didn't regret his decision later.

"Time's up, pencils down!"

Every head snapped up at that and some begrudgingly stopped writing. Rin had long since finished her exam. She was very confident in her answers. She just hoped that Obito did well; she had tutored him a little the previous week and hoped it helped. The on part Rin was worried about was the Taijutsu portion of the exam. She knew she wasn't the strongest female in the Academy; in fact, all Rin wanted was to not get knocked out within the first ten seconds of the fight. She sighed deeply, if only the Academy had a medical jutsu portion of the exam.

The Taijutsu portion of the exam came next. Each student was required to fight one match and determining how they fared against their opponent. However, there was a new condition to the Taijutsu match. Their matches wouldn't be against other Academy students, but against seasoned genin. It was the Third's way of making up for removing the Jounin-sensei's final exam. This way there was another way to weed out the 'bad eggs' of the class.

The male portion of the Taijutsu exam ended up being one huge show of male arrogance and showboating. Not that the male wannabe genin were horrible fighters, but many still had the innocence in them that was associated with children. The controlled movements they were taught to make were packed between flashy moves and flips, a good show for spectators, but also a complete waste of energy. The more they trained, then the more they would realize how important it was to conserve energy and chakra.

The female portion of the Taijutsu exam was not as bad as the male portion because the females weren't as arrogant as the boys. But, that didn't mean they were any good. Some were strong, but some wouldn't make it in a serious fight. The sheer nonchalant way most of the academy females fought made the Third consider restructuring the kunoichi class. It came down to the final fight, Rin versus Yuhi Kurenai, a genin from the previous year's graduation class, before the Third felt hope in his future kunoichi.

Rin squared herself off from the flashing red eyes of the older genin with a look of pure determination in her eyes. Kurenai grinned and took a similar stance. All of the genin who participated were required to fight with the Academy taijutsu so the fight would be fair. Rin was the first to strike, quickly throwing a punch towards Kurenai's exposed stomach. Kurenai jumped high into the air and landed behind Rin, who barely had time to dodge as Kurenai kicked towards the middle of her back. Rin twisted on her heel and landed a hook kick into the back of Kurenai's head. Kurenai plowed into the dirt before hopping right back up and charging Rin. The brown haired girl sidestepped, but was surprised to find Kurenai's fist trying to impale itself into her stomach. Oxygen was forced out of her lungs as the punch hit her stomach, causing her to fall to her knees. Rin took several deep breaths before rolling out of the way as Kurenai attempted to kick her again.

Crouching low to the ground, Rin pounced towards Kurenai and forced the girl into a rolling maneuver. After jumping to their feet, Kurenai and Rin both faced off, tossing punches and kicks between them as they fought in the middle of the dirt ring in the middle of the Academy training ground. Rin was breathing heavily by the time she was though dodging the fourth combination Kurenai threw out. Her stamina and strength were failing her, she just wasn't at the same level as Kurenai was. Which was proven when Kurenai landed a right jab into Rin's chin and knocked the panting girl to the ground. The Academy senseis called the match and named Kurenai as the victor. Rin wasn't too upset, though, she was just glad she didn't lose in the first ten seconds.

The next portion of the exam was weapons. The students were required to hit eight of the ten targets in order to pass. The targets ranged from stationary to moving targets and from close range to long range targets. Obito couldn't have been happier to get to this section of the exam, because weapons were where he shined. Proving that he wasn't horrible at everything. The smile on his face was as big and bright as the sun when it was his turn to go and he hit every single target. His Academy sensei smiled at him before marking down his score and ordering the next student to try.

Izumo watched as Kotetsu hit eight out of the ten targets. His friend hadn't done so well in the Taijutsu segment of the exam and needed to do perfectly on the next two if he wanted to pass. And with Ninjutsu and Genjutsu still up, he wondered just how well his friend was going to do.

Genjutsu was the trickiest part of the exam because it required each student to be tested individually, which was why they held the Ninjutsu part of the exam with the genjutsu part. The student knew they were going to take the genjutsu portion of their exam, but they didn't know how the genjutsu would be used. So they were required to find and release the genjutsu in order to pass. Once the student passed or failed the genjutsu part, they were then required to pull everything together to show the senseis that they could perform the ninjutsu.

Obito's final two tests went by without a hitch, except he almost missed the genjutsu. The jutsu was cast over a scroll sitting on the first row of the Academy seats. The Uchiha was seated at one of the seats and asked to wait. While he waited the genjutsu would tickle at his chakra senses and let him know something wasn't right. He almost ignored the feeling until he remembered he was supposed to be looking for a genjutsu. He released the genjutsu and was awarded with a scroll that told him to go into the next room for his ninjutsu test.

There he was required to produce at least three clones and a jutsu of his choice to showcase his chakra control and hand seal knowledge. Obito brought out an Uchiha clan favorite with the Katon: Gōkakyu no Jutsu. After the giant fireball fizzled away, the senseis finished their markings and asked Obito to take a seat while they finalized his score. All during the day other senseis and assistants had been meticulously adding the scores together so there wouldn't be any delay after the students finished their exams.

Obito waited nervously as his sensei stood up with a clipboard in his hands. "Uchiha Obito, age nine, ninja registration number 010886. You failed the written portion of the exam only succeeding in answering three out of the fifteen questions correctly. Your Taijutsu match left a lot to be desired, but overall you showed a basic knowledge of the Academy Taijutsu. The weapons portion of your test was phenomenal, you hit every single target. You did discover the genjutsu eventually, but the amount of time it took you to discover it could have cost you and your teammates greatly. Your ninjutsu was amazing as well. Based on everything that we saw today and the combined scores, we have decided that you are ready to become a shinobi of Konoha"

The sensei reached behind him and pulled out a headband. Obito took it joyfully and quickly wiped away the tears from his eyes before running out of the room.

Rin's exam had gone as well as expected. Though her Taijutsu was severely lacking, she knew she aced every other portion of her exams. All she was waiting for was the Academy sensei to tell her the outcome. "Rin, age nine, ninja registration number 010885. I don't even feel the need to go over your exam because you aced every segment except one. Your Taijutsu is lacking, because you don't have the strength or stamina that you need to complete a fight. Everything else is great. Based on everything, we have decided that you are ready to become a shinobi of Konoha."

Rin grinned brightly before taking the headband and racing out the same door Obito used previously. Soon Morino Ibiki joined the ranks of the graduated shinobi with a near perfect score in everything. It all came down to the final students when Kotetsu was called into the classroom for his genjutsu test. Izumo had long since been called into the room and the wait was making him nervous. He was beginning to think that he shouldn't have blown off the written portion.

His heart was pounding hard against his chest because he knew he needed to pass the next two segments. He walked in and sat down slowly, half expecting something to pop out at him. A few seconds later the tingling began to grate on Kotetsu's nerves before he finally just clasped his hands together and released the chakra. Genjutsu was his strong point and he only hoped it held true through the test. To his relief, a scroll appeared and he was directed into the final room. After his ninjutsu test, Kotetsu stood on shaking knees before the Academy senseis. "Hagane Kotetsu, age eight, ninja registration number 012050. Boy, you didn't even do the written portion so we can't grade you on that. Your Taijutsu was laughable. If the test was strictly on those two things then you wouldn't have a snowball's chance in Hell of passing." Kotetsu winced at the words. "But, you did well on the other portions. You passed, barely, but passed. Congratulations."

Kotetsu grinned wildly and hugged the sensei before snatching his headband and running out the door.

The jounin back in the meeting room watched the entire testing with interested eyes and many already had picks for their teams, Umino Kita especially. She already had the team she wanted picked out in her mind's eye and could see herself training them into amazing shinobi. They would be unstoppable once she was through with them.

The Hokage smiled at his jounin, "Any takers?"

Kita raised her hand, "I want Ibiki, Kotetsu, and Izumo."

Another jounin, a medic-nin by the name of Tottori Hisao, turned to the Umino. "Why? Ibiki and Izumo I can understand, but Kotetsu?"

Kita shrugged, "Separating Izumo and Kotetsu would be disastrous and besides, he's seems to be a bright boy. He just needs some special guidance."

The Hokage nodded his head, "I agree. Does anyone disagree with Kita taking those students?"

No on disagreed, but Hisao raised his hand, "I want Rin. She would make an excellent medic-nin and according to her files, she is interested in the field."

The Hokage sighed deeply this time, "If you take Rin, then you're going to have to take Obito. The lowest scores are always paired with the highest. Like Kotetsu and Izumo, Obito and Rin were paired together."

Hisao's nose scrunched together in disgust before sighing, "Fine. He could be a good fighter if he calmed down some. Who will the third member be?"

"How about Yamanaka Isamu? He will compliment Rin's skills and maybe calm Obito down some." Hisao nodded in agreement before taking his three student's files from the Hokage's hands. Kita was already looking through hers with an interested eye. "You are dismissed to prepare for your students."

Hisao and Kita both left the meeting room, Kita headed towards the T&I department to tell her husband about her newest students. Tomorrow she would meet them and they would begin their journey together.

* * *

Across Konoha, as the last of the new graduates celebrated with their families, a brown haired woman worked over her paperwork with a critical eye. The only downside to being head of the poison department was all of the paperwork. If she didn't stop letting it back up then one day it was going to take over her office. The papers were already threatening to eat her desk.

Tohru sighed before leaning back and stretching her back out until she heard a resounding 'pop'. She quickly stood and walked around her office so she could stretch out her legs. Sitting behind that desk was causing her muscles to cramp up. A knock sounded on her door and to her immediate displeasure, she found a chunin bringing in more paperwork. He sat it on her desk and gave her a charming grin before walking out again. Tohru felt like she was going to scream.

Instead, she sighed and turned the radio on. If she had to suffer through more paperwork and mindless filing, then she was going to do it to music. The light melody floated around the room from the station as Tohru began filing the records into the filing cabinet behind her. Then the melody stopped and a news report from the front blared through the speakers. Tohru stopped filing long enough to listen to the latest news about the war. It wasn't a pretty situation for Konoha and the news made Tohru's heart ache. She stopped filing once more to look out the window and smile sadly at the floating clouds. Sakumo was on her mind again.

His kiss was still burned into her memory. The way his hand felt on her chin and the way his voice sounded when he talked about his brother. She could remember everything as clearly as if it had happened yesterday. Sakumo was a dashing man, one that any woman would be lucky to have. She grinned to herself; none of her boyfriends so far had measured up to him and his kiss. She had to admit that her newest one did have potential and a sweetness about him that she loved. He was nothing like Ryozo and that was a huge plus for her. She didn't need another controlling lover.

Another melody played through the speakers making Tohru sigh again. She was getting too old to play the whole 'new boyfriend every week' game. A part of her just wanted to settle down and get the stability she needed. Tohru laughed at her herself before going back to filing her papers. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't stop worrying about Sakumo and his boy. She knew Kakashi was out there somewhere with his dad. She mentally reminded herself to say an extra prayer for the two Hatakes.

"Tohru-san."

Tohru jumped slightly before turning to look at the tall man standing in her doorway. It was the snake Sannin himself, Orochimaru. She blushed slightly before putting the papers she was filing back on her desk. "Orochimaru-sama, I'm sorry I didn't hear you come in. Do you need something?"

Orochimaru nodded, "You're needed in the lab. They want to test out my newest poison. It's a berserker poison."

Tohru nodded and stood up to put on her lab coat. She grabbed a set of gloves and buttoned her coat. "Lead the way."

* * *

While Tohru was watching the test subjects attack each other after being introduced to Orochimaru's berserker poison, another young woman was intently searching every gossip vine she could for information on Hatake Nozomi. The battle was on now that Sakumo was fighting on the front lines for the village. Every girl in Konoha knew the mental stability of a solider returning from war and how they usually needed to prove their existence or celebrate the fact that they were still alive with the closest girl they could find. Everyone was waiting to see if Sakumo would hold true to those standards and with Sakumo being the upstanding gentleman that he was if he did anything with a girl then she was almost guaranteed to become the next Hatake. Kazuma Momo was determined to beat out the other girls for the White Fang's affection. So in order to win him over, she was going to dig into his past and manipulate her life and ways to resemble his late wife's. It was tricky and downright evil, but Momo was going to use everything she had to snag her prize.

Her hunt actually turned up more successful than she originally thought it would have. After two years of searching she found Nozomi's grave and the place that arranged her funeral. From the funeral home, Momo was able to sneak into the records room after distracting the director. All she got from that was a couple of names that ended up being duds. Momo thought all hope was lost until she just so happened to run into an older woman that remembered the bakery run by an elderly man and woman. She was even able to get a name for them, Sasaki Ken and Keiko. After learning Nozomi's maiden name, Momo was able to ask more intimately about the woman before she was Hatake Nozomi. Surprisingly enough, more people remembered Sasaki Nozomi than Hatake Nozomi. Almost everyone Momo interviewed remembered her as the sweet young lady that helped her grandparents in their bakery. Momo turned her sights to the bakery.

Her search came to a startling halt when two women inquired after her interests. Momo was innocently asking questions in the diner that used to be Nozomi's grandparent's bakery, hoping that maybe one of the workers would remember the deceased woman. Instead of getting the information she wanted, she was met with angry glares and harsh words from the two women. One being an older woman named Shiranui Sango and the other being Nozomi's best friend, Miki.

Sango is the mother of Genma and heard a lot about the man from her son. Genma was eternally impressed with the man's prowess and humility, which made Sango respect the shinobi. Her son would never admit it, but he looked up to Sakumo a lot more than he did his own father. So when Sango heard the pink haired known gold-digger asking about Hatake Nozomi, she couldn't stop herself from being curious.

Miki loved Nozomi like a sister. She was there through everything from the first date to the last day the black haired woman lived. She knew Sakumo better than anyone else could even hope to, even though she hadn't seen him in years. They just had nothing in common except Nozomi and losing her was a wound that may never heal for the silver haired man. Miki couldn't figure out what Momo wanted with information about Nozomi and the only thing she could come up with was that this somehow dealt with Sakumo. Miki felt anger boil in her veins as she stared down the pink haired girl.

The girl had the audacity to walk into her diner and try to gain information to use so she could bag herself a Hatake. Miki wasn't going to stand for it and after watching the brown haired customer bristle at the seemingly innocent questions, she wasn't the only one that wasn't going to allow this to go on.

Miki put on her fakest smile before turning to the pink haired harlot. "I'm sorry sweetie. I don't think I heard you right. What did you ask again?"

Momo gave Miki a smile that match the one she was sporting, "I wanted to know if you knew the girl that's grandparents used to own the bakery that was here before this diner? I believe her name was Sasaki Nozomi."

Miki dropped her smile and crossed her arms, "Yes, she was my best friend. I remember her very well."

Momo's green eyes lit up with overflowing joy as she clapped her hands together. "Can you tell me a little bit about her?"

Sango was the one that interrupted before Miki could say anything. "I'm sorry, this may be none of my business, but what right do you have digging up information on Hatake Nozomi? Huh Momoko?"

Momo flushed before taking a step back and glaring at the brown haired woman. "You're right; it's none of your business."

Miki raised an eyebrow at the pink haired girl, "I'm not really comfortable talking about my friend, the anniversary of her death is coming up soon and I don't think I'm in the right mental state to talk about her." The girl glared before opening her mouth, but Miki stopped her, "Don't say anything else. I know what you're doing and you're not the first to try it. Leave Sakumo alone because you'll never live up to the memory of Nozomi. Hell, you'll never be half the woman Nozomi was. Now, good day."

Momo growled low in her throat before tearing out of the diner, leaving behind a smiling Miki and a scowling Sango. Sango turned to Miki, "She's not going to stop. That girl is bad news and the biggest money hog I've ever seen. Someone has to warn Hatake-san."

"Luckily for us, he's out of the village and away from those claws. I have a feeling this isn't the end of Momo's antics. Something tells me that she's going to go too far before the end of this."

Sango sighed before turning and smiling, "Well, I've got to run. Just watch out for that girl."

Miki nodded and waved to the other woman, "Oh wait! I didn't get your name."

Sango blushed and grinned, "How rude of me. I'm Shiranui Sango."

"Saki Miki. You should come by more often. Something tells me I'm going to need all the help I can get with Momo on the loose."

"Certainly. Bye!"

"Bye!"

Miki watched her customer leave before looking at the picture taped to the front side of the cash register. It was her favorite picture of her and Nozomi. Nozomi was about six months pregnant and Miki had bullied her into the diner to bake some cookies for the lunch hour rush. They were both covered in flour and sugar, but the smile on their faces couldn't have been brighter or wider. Miki sniffled quickly and wiped the wetness from her eyes. She couldn't believe Nozomi had been dead for almost eight years. Miki sighed deeply and quickly wiped her eyes as another customer walked into the diner.

"Welcome, the special today is teriyaki shrimp."

* * *

The Third groaned as he pinched the bridge of his nose to attempt to settle down the monster headache he was experiencing. The talk with his youngest son hadn't gone as nicely as he wanted it to. All they ended up doing was yelling at each other which lead to Asuma stomping out of the room. Hiruzen didn't know where the conversation went wrong. All he asked was if Asuma was going to be at the _Falling Leaf_ for his brother's engagement announcement. Asuma hadn't taken the question well and started yelling. The Third just snapped at his young son and yelled right back. They didn't get anything accomplished except making each other mad.

Hiruzen sighed before looking at the clock; it was almost time for the dinner. His wife was patiently waiting on him outside the door and threatened him if he made them late. She smiled at him before gently pushing him forward and telling him to hurry up, at the rate they were going they wouldn't make it there by closing.

"Now dear, we'll make it. What about Asuma?"

"Sure we will. I haven't seen Asuma all day, but I'm sure he'll be there. Don't worry dear."

The only problem was that Asuma never showed up at the _Falling Leaf_. Katsu even waited an entire extra hour before proposing to Ami, who excitedly said 'yes' with tears streaming down her eyes. The youngest boy's absence was felt, though, especially by Katsu who was still expecting him to pop in up until the very last minute. Hiruzen was furious. The entire evening was ruined by his son, all over a childish argument.

Hiruzen was fuming by the time he found Asuma. His youngest son was sleeping soundly in his bed. The father entered the room with the full intent of snatching his child out of the bed, but stopped as he saw the dried up tear tracks running down his son's cheeks. All of Hiruzen's anger dissipated and he moved to sit on the edge of Asuma's bed. The boy instantly jumped awake and blindly reached for a weapon.

"Asuma. Stop, it's me." Asuma stopped looking for a weapon and simply turned with his back to Hiruzen. The elder Sarutobi sighed and reached over to run his fingers through Asuma's chocolate locks. The boy tried his hardest to not move into the motion. "Asuma, why didn't you come to the _Falling Leaf_?"

Asuma cleared his throat, "I'm sorry. I was just so angry and upset. She's from Iwa dad and her kid's some Iwagakure shinobi's son. She's not good enough for Katsu or for our family."

Hiruzen scrunched his forehead together in frustration, "Those are all lies. Yes, she's from Iwa, but she's not loyal to Iwa. She's loyal to Konoha and Konoha is her new home. Mozuku holds no claims to Iwa except that it's the place of his conception. Katsu would be in trouble if the place of conception mattered because he'd have to live in the Land of Lightning."

Asuma blushed and tried to hide his face from his father. His voice held just a small whine as he spoke. "Dad, please don't talk about stuff like that. I'd rather not hear it."

Hiruzen chuckled before continuing, "Ami is excellent for our family because she loves Katsu. Just like you'll one day find a girl to love. Mozuku will become your nephew and it'll be your duty to protect him. Do you think you can do that?"

Asuma nodded before sitting up and looking fully at his dad, "I really am sorry."

"You need to apologize to Ami and Katsu tomorrow. Don't let it worry you anymore tonight."

Asuma nodded and did something he hadn't done it weeks, he hugged his father's neck. Hiruzen hugged back tightly before softly telling his son to go to sleep. He walked out of his son's room with a lighter heart, but knowing their battles weren't over yet.

* * *

Nara Takumi watched as his six-year-old adopted daughter giggled before telling him about the fight that happened at the Academy that day. It was well passed her bedtime, but Hana always waited up for him when he was returning from a mission. Hana took very well to her transition into the Nara clan, the only thing that marked her as different was the puzzling habit she picked up shortly after starting the Academy. Takumi couldn't figure out why she did it, but Hana developed a strange love for changing her hair color. She had a different hair color at least every three days.

Takumi didn't know whether to be worried or laugh at the color combinations she tried. He just felt lucky she was changing her hair color via a henge and not permanent dye. That would have gotten expensive and messy.

"And daddy, Iruka laid the other boy flat on his back!"

Takumi grinned at the little girl in his arms, "Did he now? Do I sense a little crush?"

Hana blushed as red as her hair, "No! Boys are icky and have cooties."

Takumi chuckled before placing her in her bed, "That's my girl. You stay far away from those nasty boys 'til your daddy says so."

Hana wringed her hands slightly, a nervous habit he noticed she had, before looking up at him with watery eyes. "Daddy? Can I sleep with you tonight?"

Takumi knew he was whipped because he couldn't say 'no' to the face before him. He nodded his head and watched as the girl happily bounced out of her bed and down the hall to his. He found her snuggled against his pillow with a grin on her face. Takumi shook his head before shedding his dirty pants and pulling on his pajamas. He slowly moved her over and nestled beside her before drifting off into a peaceful sleep.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

They were separating us. The Hokage really needed to stop smoking whatever was in his pipe because it was making him crazy. Naru and I had been through everything together. Hell, we did everything together. The last two years for us have been on continuous battle that we fought together, side by side. I felt like someone just told me they were removing one of my limbs. Don't get me wrong, I was excited to start training, but not without Naru.

I turned to look at her and saw the pout on her face. She wasn't happy at all. This was completely screwing with our system. One of the major things Naru and I made sure we continued while on the battlefield was the same pranking tactics we used in Konoha and in our original timeline. It was just our way of making things interesting and spreading a few smiles along the way. I'm pretty sure the shinobi in charge of the supply lines nearly laughed their butts off laughing at some of dad's supply request sheets. We had used everything from honey to itching powder on the Iwa shinobi. The first time we used our pranks to take an enemy squad by surprise had to be the funniest.

We were deep into Kusagakure territory when we stumbled onto a squad of Iwa shinobi sleeping soundly in a tent. They had a single guard on duty and three shinobi in the tent, all four were sound asleep. In a turn of luck, I had somehow accidently managed to pick up some of our patented itching powder bombs while I was packing for deployment. I knew which ones they were because Naru had marked each of them with an orange dot, so we could tell the difference between them and the regular smoke bombs.

The team was exhausted from an entire week of running with the supply lines and in need of a little fun when we stumbled onto the sleeping shinobi. This was before we were moved to the frontlines, so the constant running with the supply lines was making us antsy. Naru begged Dad with her big blue puppy dog eyes to let us prank the shinobi. At first Dad wasn't too sure about it because it seemed like a waste of energy, but after Ronin got on board with us and started begging, he eventually relented. Now as fun as pranking them were, we also had to eliminate them after we had our fun.

The shinobi were sleeping near a river, so Naru and I got some mud and water to seal into a scroll and had one of Naru's clones suspend the scroll over the top of the opening of the tent. We also had Sai conjure up a genjutsu to place over the shinobi sleeping in the tent. It was one that would make the shinobi think the tent was filled with bees. After everything was ready and raring to go, we had Ronin light the itching powder bomb and toss it in the man's lap. Ronin missed and the bomb landed in the opening in the front of the shinobi's shirt. A few tense minutes passed by where the shinobi started twitching in his sleep.

Sai unleashed her genjutsu and we suddenly heard the sounds of the shinobi inside trying to bat away imaginary bees. The shinobi ran out of their tent, dancing around and swatting after nothing, waking up their guard. Who started dancing around himself and scratching where the itching powder was making its presence known. One of the shinobi finally realized it was a genjutsu and brought his hands up to release it. While he was releasing the genjutsu, Naru and I released the seals on the scrolls and down fell the muddy mixture from the trees. Leaving behind four very muddy and wet Iwa shinobi.

After everyone finally stopped laughing at the surprised looks on the Iwa shinobi's faces we attacked and took care of them. The team's first introduction into our 'prank war' went very well and didn't stop there. Whenever we were having a slow week or just a boring day, the team would allow me and Naru to attack the enemy with our pranks. We had definitely earned ourselves a name on the Konoha side as 'Konoha's Dynamic Pranking Duo.' I tried to ignore all thoughts of Gai whenever I heard our nickname.

Jiraiya broke through my thoughts a few minutes later, "There's also another reason they need to be separated. They've caught Iwa's attention."

I watched him curiously for a few minutes, wondering just exactly what he was hinting at.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Minato blinked, "You've mentioned that twice Jiraiya. What do you mean by that?"

Sakumo watched as Jiraiya pulled out a small brown book from his jacket pocket. "I picked this up somewhere between here and Iwa. It's Iwa's latest bingo book. Why don't you take a look?"

He gave it to Sakumo, who in turn began flipping through the pages. He bypassed his own entry and Minato's before stopping completely. There in the middle of the book was a two page spread featuring two very familiar nine-year-olds, one that looked a lot like him and the other a little girl with blonde hair and blue eyes. Sakumo felt his hands shake as he looked at the pictures of his son and student in Iwa's bingo book.

He passed the book off to Minato, who looked at it in stunned shock. The book dropped from his hands as the implications of the information ran through his mind. They were huge targets now. This complicated things. He hadn't anticipated them becoming well known to Iwa until much later in life.

Naru and Kakashi both blinked at each other before Kakashi reached down to pick up the book. His eyes widened as he took in his own picture and the stats located across the sides of the pages. Everything about them, from parentage to best jutsu and skills were listed. The book was amazing accurate in everything except their heights and weights. Naru was bouncing over her feet as she took the book from Kakashi and scowled at the picture.

"I look like a little girl in this picture."

Kakashi blinked over at her, "You are a little girl."

Naru rolled her eyes, "No, that's not what I mean. You at least look intimidating in your picture. I look like a girl."

Minato looked up in shock at his daughter and Sakumo didn't know whether to laugh or have the girl's head checked. Kakashi distracted them, though, by pointing to the nicknames running across the bottom of their pages.

"I like their nicknames for us better than Konoha's choices. Look, Demons of the Leaf, Terrors Hidden in the Leaves, and Twins of the Apocalypse. Iwa definitely gets a point from me on creativity."

Naru snickered before pointing at some of the other names running across the bottom, "And then they lose my point for those nicknames." Kakashi's eye twitched as Naru read off the names. "Leaf Gremlins, the Blonde Bomber, the Masked Midget, the Yellow Nymph of Konoha." Naru stopped before looking up at Kakashi and grinning, "Oh, you'll love this next one, and Baby Fang."

A dark cloud of depression settled over Kakashi as Naru attempted to console her friend. "They didn't do that to me, did they? Not only did they mess with my height, but they also messed with my pride."

Naru sadly nodded her head before patting his back, "It's okay scarecrow, one day you will be tall and not known as 'Baby Fang'."

Kakashi openly pouted before looking away from Naru. "I grew a whole two inches! I take it back, Iwa is full of idiots."

Sakumo listened as the conversation the two were having slowly formed into an argument after Naru realized her name was listed second on the page.

"How come you get listed first?"

"Seriously Naru? Alphabetical order."

"No, it's just because you're a guy."

"Fine! The next time we're put into another village's bingo book, I'll make sure they put your name first."

Minato sat staring at the two as they argued over the bingo book. He looked over at the laughing Jiraiya and wide eyed Sakumo, "Normal people are devastated to learn their names are in a bingo book. Why do our kids find it exciting?"

Sakumo suddenly shook his head and started laughing. He grabbed his sides before managing to give Minato an answer, "They're both crazy. That's the only thing I can think of. They're both crazy."

Minato still didn't see the humor in the situation, but he let it go. He simply shook his head before smiling as a noticeable chakra entered the area.

"So what did I miss?"

Naru looked up and smiled brightly, "Kushina! Me and Kakashi made Iwa's bingo book."

Kushina looked impressed, "Good job kiddo, next goal is Suna's."

Minato glared at his girlfriend, "Don't encourage them."

Kushina laughed before taking the book and looking at the picture. "Yeah, Iwa is getting creative with their nicknames. Baby Fang is my favorite so far."

Kakashi's black cloud of depression returned as he glared at the floor. Naru heard him grumble something under his breath that sounded suspiciously like 'I'm not a baby'. Which made Naru smile as she reached over and squeezed her friend's hand. He winked at her before turning their attention back to Kushina. It wasn't too long, though, before Sakumo suggested they get ready for bed. They had a busy time ahead of them and would need all the sleep they could get while they could get it.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

We left the adults alone to walk back into the inn. I stopped Kakashi and pulled him over to talk to him. We were alone, so I knew I could talk freely. He eye-smiled at me. "Worried?"

I nodded, "Increasingly so."

I was terrified and I didn't know why. We weren't being sent onto a huge battlefield, but we were being taken out of our element. I was losing Kakashi and it terrified me. I could feel my shoulders shaking and I propelled myself forward and wrapped my arms around his neck. He pulled me tightly against his chest, comforting me in a way only Hatake Kakashi could. I soon felt his fingers running through my hair as he buried his face into the top of my head. I'm taller than him, so I have to bend my knees for him to do so.

"We're going to be just fine." It sounded like he was trying to convince himself more than me.

"Scarecrow, please, don't die."

Kakashi squeezed me tighter before pulling his mask down and making me fully look into his face. "Naru, I've told you many times that I'm going to make things better. I haven't come this far to let it all slip away by something as simple as death."

I laughed and hiccupped as Kakashi released me. "But what if…"

I couldn't help it; I flopped to the ground in frustration. Kakashi was still standing before me when he leaned down and pulled my headband off. He showed it to me before he took his own off. He switched them quickly, "There. Now a little bit of me will be with you while we're separated." He grinned, "And never say 'if' Naru. You're not going to die and I'm not going to die. We have too much life left to live."

I sniffled twice before nodding and wiping my eyes. Kakashi kneeled down to my level and untied the material to retie it around my head. He stops, though, and grins before placing a soft kiss against my forehead. I fight down my blush as he pulled away and finished tying his headband around my head. I reached for my headband and tied it around his head. He pulled away before I could let my lips get anywhere near his face.

"We'll be just fine Fishcake."

I just hoped he was right.


	33. Part 2: Chapter 4

**Part 2: Chapter 4**

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

When Kakashi and I parted ways outside of the Inn, there were no heavy words or long goodbyes between us. We didn't even speak to each other. Everything that needed to be said had already been said the night before. He eye-smiled at me and tapped the headband upon his forehead with his forefinger. Then he walked away from me to stand beside Sensei.

Dad, on the other hand, stood solemnly beside Kushina and sadly watched me for a few minutes before engulfing me into a hug. I buried my face into his shoulder and hugged him back as tightly as I could. My arms didn't reach fully around him, but I tried my hardest to push all of my emotions into that hug. It wasn't fair. I had a family this time around, but I wasn't able to spend time with them because of the war. Dad pulled away first, but I kept my head lowered. I didn't trust my self-control enough to look into his eyes without bursting into tears. Dad seemed to understand that as he gently placed two fingers underneath my chin and lifted my head so I was looking into his eyes. They carried the same watery emotions as mine. He smiled slowly before gently using his thumb to wipe away the few traitorous tears that overflowed from my eyes and ran down my cheeks. I didn't want to say 'goodbye' to him.

He knelt down to my level and spoke softly to me, so only the two of us could hear what he was going to say. "We're not going to say goodbye today, because goodbyes are final and I plan to see you again as soon as I can. We're not even going to acknowledge the fact that we're being separated."

I blinked at him in confusion, "What do you mean?"

He grinned and pointed to my heart, "Because I'm going to be there and you," he pointed to his own heart, "are going to be here. We're connected by one of the strongest bonds of all, the bond between a father and daughter. It's a bond that won't shatter or splinter as time and distance separates us, but will instead grow stronger with each passing second and mile. In hopes that one day, we'll be together again and all of our time separated would develop into a stronger bond to connect us."

I could feel myself getting teary-eyed again as he playfully poked my nose and pulled me into another hug. This hug was different from the first one, it didn't hold the same sense of desperation, but instead was calm and steady. I sniffled once before laying my head on his shoulder and burying my face into the crook of his neck.

"I'm going to miss you."

Dad chuckled as he poked my ribs, trying to elicit a giggle or smile from me. I stubbornly attempted to hold my pout only to fail as his fingers danced further up my ribs. "Weren't you listening to me little girl? I said that I would be with you everywhere you go, so there is no need to miss me. I'll be there when you laugh and when you cry. I'll be there through your successes and through your failures. Let's pretty much agree on the fact that a part of me will always be with you. We'll always be connected by our love." He carefully removed me from his embrace and flicked my bangs out of my eyes before tilting his head to the side and staring at me. "You'll do fine. You are my daughter after all." He brushed a soft kiss against the top of my head before standing in front of me. "Good luck kiddo and make sure Jiraiya doesn't get into any trouble."

I laughed and wiped the last of the gathered wetness from my eyes. "I will!" I took a few steps away from him, before changing my mind and wrapping my arms around him in a hug one last time. We weren't going to see each other for a while and I wanted this last hug to last until we met again. It was going to be strange not having Dad near me. The Third had made sure our teams weren't separated very often and now it seemed our time together had to end, at least for now.

Dad chuckled and hugged me back just as tightly as before. Kushina walked over and placed her hand on Dad's shoulder. She winked at me before gently shoving Dad out of the way and pulling me into a tight hug. Our relationship changed a lot after Whirlpool was destroyed. We were closer. Not as close as I would like, but we were getting there.

"See you when you get back kid."

Dad nodded in agreement as he looked over at Sensei who was absentmindedly running his fingers through Kakashi's hair in a melancholy sort of way. Surprisingly enough, Kakashi wasn't trying to move away from the public display of affection and I think a lot of that had to do with that fact that we were the only ones at the gate. Dad patted my head before getting sensei's attention.

"Sakumo, you make sure you look after her. Don't let her get into any trouble."

Sensei laughed and agreed, "And you do the same for Kakashi."

I looked between the two of them and placed my hands on my hips, the depression leaving me as I teased back. "Now both of you listen here, Kakashi and I don't go looking for trouble. It usually finds us." Both men laughed at my words and Kushina grinned at us knowingly, at least she understood we were trouble magnets. I turned one last time to Dad and pointed my finger at him. Even with the gloomy emotions buzzing around us, I couldn't help but make him promise he would take care of himself and Kakashi. They were going deep into enemy territory and if one of them were injured, then their chance of getting caught shot through the roof.

"Dad, promise me that you'll take care of yourself and Kakashi."

He laughed, before stopping after seeing the serious look on my face. He quickly assumed a position of attention and gave me a sloppy two fingered salute.

"Yes ma'am I promise."

I crossed my arms over my chest and raised an eyebrow at him. "I'm serious Daddy, three meals a day, plenty of sleep, rest time, the whole shebang. I want you both to come back healthy and safe."

Dad nodded, "I'll even make Kakashi eat a fruit every now and then."

I ignored Kakashi's shout of 'hey' and nodded in pleasure. "You've got to eat one too."

Dad laughed, "I'll eat two just for you."

With all of our 'goodbyes' said and unsaid, we left the Inn and traveled west toward Amegakure, it would take a couple days travel to get there, but it wasn't anything we couldn't handle. Sensei walked leisurely beside me, lost in his thoughts. I hadn't seen his and Kakashi's goodbye, but something told me it was just as emotional as mine and Dad's was. He noticed me staring at him and winked before ruffling my hair. I rolled my eyes; apparently that little display of affection was something all Sensei's of Konoha picked up.

Jiraiya was quiet. After we were a half-day's distance into our journey, the white haired man stopped our progress. It wasn't getting anywhere near dark nor was it time for lunch, but he stopped us for a break.

We were still in Fire Country borders, so the trees gave us perfect cover from the glaring morning sun. We also didn't have much to worry about as far as ambushes were concerned, at least not on our side of the border. In another thirty minutes or so, we would need to be on high alert for surprise attacks from enemy shinobi. I was pretty sure that as we got close to the border then Sensei and Jiraiya were going to suggest we get off the main road and into the forest.

"We're going to start running pretty soon, so I thought it would be nice for a break."

I was right. Once we started running, we were going to head to the trees. As Konoha shinobi, the trees were our comfort zone. Which was one of the main reasons Iwa tried their hardest to battle Konoha away from the comforts of the trees. They knew they wouldn't win if we were able to use the trees to our advantage.

I was brought back to the matter at hand as Sensei nodded, "I'm going to scout ahead and see what we're heading into."

As Sensei left, Jiraiya sat down and watched me like a hawk watches its prey. He rubbed a hand across his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose before sighing deeply. I didn't know if he was frustrated with me or with something else. Finally, he patted the dirt beside him, "Come sit with me Naru."

As illogical as it seems, I could hear something different in his voice. There was something else there, something softer and sweeter, almost like he was talking to a well liked niece or nephew. Ignoring everything that had transpired between us in the past, I walked over and sat beside him. I did pull my knees up to my chest so I could jump away if he tried anything. This sudden change made me uneasy. I stared quizzically at him before resting my chin on top of my knees.

He took several deep breaths before swallowing and fisting his hands into the dirt. "After everything I went through with Cho and Kazue, I developed this innate fear that it would happen again. Silly, I know, but people can't be trusted. I didn't trust you at all, but I watched you and Minato before we left. No one can fake the emotion you showed and no one can fake the bond that's between you and Minato."

I lifted my head from my knees in shock, but found my throat too dry to speak.

"Whatever you feel for Minato is real and I can't deny its existence. This is hard for me to admit, but maybe you're not Cho. I still don't fully trust you because of the mysterious circumstances surrounding your appearance, but I can't deny the love between you and Minato. Something that Cho never exhibited towards me," He smiled at me, "Maybe I'm just a stubborn, but I'm hoping this can be put behind us. I kind of miss your dad."

I returned his smile before looking at the dirt falling freely from his hand, "How can we put this behind us, when you still don't trust me?"

Jiraiya shrugged and I was hit with a sudden memory of him from the other timeline. I could plainly see him sitting on one of the walls of Konoha as he watched the sun set. He was trying his hardest to get me to give up the search on Sasuke and I was blind enough to fight him on the subject. I could remember the harsh words that I threw at him and the ruthless glares. He had taken it all in stride, though, before smacking me in the back of the head. The memory got kind of fuzzy after that, but I could feel the unspoken affection between the two of us. I wanted that relationship between us once more, I wanted it back.

"I don't know, maybe I can start with apologizing." He looked up into the trees before sighing, "I am sorry for what I said, but you understand where I'm coming from right? I simply want to protect my student and after watching you two today, it seems like I'm not the only one."

I nodded, "I accept your apology. Dad really does miss you, even if he doesn't like to show it."

Jiraiya nodded and reached over to ruffle my hair. It wasn't perfect and I didn't have his complete trust, but it was a start. At least he knew I wasn't going to be another Cho.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Shortly after Naru and Jiraiya's heart-to-heart, Naru retreated into the trees to use the bathroom leaving Jiraiya behind. The white haired man sighed deeply, "You can come out now Sakumo." Sakumo grinned as he dropped from the tree overhead. Jiraiya rolled his eyes, "Oh get that pleased look off of your face!" Jiraiya pouted openly before flicking a rock with his thumb. "How much did you hear?"

Sakumo shrugged and crouched down in front of Jiraiya, "About all of it. I'm proud of you old friend, you're actually acting like an adult. Took you long enough."

Jiraiya snorted, "Says the man that snoops around while he's supposed to be scouting ahead."

"Hey! I did scout ahead, but got back just in time to hear you apologize. I'm kind of proud of you and I know Minato would be too."

Jiraiya rolled his eyes, "Oh shut-up. Get the brat and let's go."

"Come on Naru!"

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

Amegakure was rainy with a lot of standing water. The rivers, lakes, and puddles overflowed with the liquid from the clouds. Making it miserable weather for travel, whether we were in the trees or on foot. Actually, the rain made tree travel more dangerous because of the slipperiness of the branches and the lack of visual clarity, one wrong step and 'hello hard forest floor below'. I think that's why we kept to the back roads once we actually got into the Land of Rain borders.

We were all on high alert; we already passed three abandoned campsites within the last two hours. Campfires were extinguished and tents were taken down, but packs and sleeping bags were left behind. With supplies getting so hard to come by, smart shinobi just don't leave all of their food and weapons behind. It makes us think they were taken by surprise or that the campsites were decoys. But something didn't add up with the campsites. Sensei took the time to call out Kane and Shiri and they sniffed around each site only to discover the campsites smelled like a strange combination of pine and smoke. The trees in the forest were all a combination of oak and redwood, not a single pine tree around. In fact, the last pine tree I saw was back in Fire Nation borders.

Sensei's eyes were blank as he looked over the fourth campsite we found. "Something's not right." He threw Jiraiya a quick look, "Are you sure we're the only Konoha shinobi in this part of Ame?"

Jiraiya shrugged before walking over to the packs and kicking one over. It rolled once before stopping and lying on the ground in a lump. "Even if Konoha shinobi were in this part of Ame, why are they leaving their campsites like this?"

I walked beside Jiraiya and poked the bag with my big toe, "What if it's a trap?"

Sensei pulled his mask down and frowned, "If it was a trap we would have triggered something by now or alerted them to our presence."

Shiri walked over and sniffed at one of the other packs before nosing it with her snout. She turned to look over at Kane and growled low in her throat. Sensei stiffened and turned to look in the same direction, I saw him slowly reach behind him to pull out his tanto. Jiraiya already had a kunai clutched tightly in his hand. _Tsukiakari_ was securely strapped to my back and within reach if I needed it, but I couldn't sense what they were sensing. I felt like I was missing something very important. Quickly, I took a deep breath and expanded my senses until I picked up the faintest spark of chakra heading our way. My eyes snapped open and I took a defensive stance, it was barreling straight towards us.

Suddenly, the forest erupted with a barrage of kunai and shuriken. Sensei immediately grabbed me and rolled into the underbrush away from the clearing. Jiraiya was right behind us the entire way. I wormed out of Sensei's arms and bent down to peer through the small holes in the underbrush. A couple of masked shinobi jumped from the same direction the weapons came from and looked around the clearing. They were looking for us.

Jiraiya bent down beside me and watched closely as one of the other shinobi turned to look at the brush we were hiding in. He wore a mask like Konoha's ANBU, except their masks were nearly blank and void of any painting. Then, just as quickly as they appeared, they disappeared, leaving behind the campsite and the residue of their eerie chakra. Sensei's forehead was scrunched together in confusion as he looked over to Jiraiya.

"Who were they?"

Jiraiya shrugged before standing up. "I don't know. They weren't wearing anything to pin them to a certain village. They could be simply hired hands. I'm going to send a toad back to Konoha and ask Sensei about this."

Sakumo-sensei nodded in agreement before whistling for Shiri and Kane. They appeared nearly instantaneously, Shiri's face was marred by blood but other than that they were fine. Sensei quickly checked over her wound and found it to be nothing more than a scratch. He bandaged it quickly as Jiraiya sent off his message with a small toad I had never seen before.

Jiraiya looked west again and pointed, "Let's go before they show up again. We barely managed to escape their weapons."

Sensei nodded and we left quickly, leaving behind the perplexing campsite. After we were far enough away from the campsite, we stopped for the night and waited out the lightning storm that sprung up on us while we were traveling. Traveling in the trees was especially dangerous whenever it was lightning, because the lightning usually went for the tallest thing in the area and you don't get much taller than trees.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

The small toad Jiraiya sent to Konoha was hurriedly hopping along the forest floor trying to get to Konoha with Jiraiya's urgent message. He never noticed the black shadow gliding along above him, nor did he hear the faint chuckle as the shadow took out a shiny kunai. The toad never made it out of the forest and his message never made it to the Hokage, but it did make it into Konoha a few days later.

The shinobi with the blank masks appeared in a dark room in front of a large desk. The man behind the desk was older, but still maintained his black hair. Both of his eyes were glaring at the three shinobi in his office. His anger clearly shown in the way he crisply ordered them to report and inform him why they weren't still in Ame. The shinobi didn't answer, but instead handed their leader the message from Jiraiya.

Danzo read the message before flicking his eyes up to the black holes in the mask. "Dismissed. Mission canceled for now. Call back the others."

"Sir, do we need to inform Hanzo of the change in plans?"

Danzo nodded, "Tell him that we regret not being able to help, but something came up. With Jiraiya and Sakumo in Ame it would be impossible for my ROOT shinobi to get involved in his little demonstration."

As his shinobi left, Danzo sighed and ran his fingers along the spine of an old book. Opening the book quickly, he pulled out the letters hidden between the pages. They were every letter he and Hanzo had exchanged since the leader of Ame asked for Danzo's help in squashing an uprising among his shinobi. Their agreement was simple; Danzo would send his ROOT shinobi into Amegakure to help Hanzo's shinobi take down the leader of the uprising, a young man named Yahiko. In return, Hanzo would help Danzo claim the title of Hokage.

Amegakure was barely holding on with the Third Shinobi War brewing on both sides of them and a potential civil war brewing within. A rebellion was being led by three young teenagers and Hanzo wanted it to stop. His plan involved luring the public leader, Yahiko, into a fake meeting. Once Yahiko was there, Danzo's ROOT shinobi would kidnap the blue haired girl, Konan, and pit the other boy, Nagato, against Yahiko. Hanzo was going to give Nagato an ultimatum, kill Yahiko or Konan died.

Danzo thought it was a perfect plan and nothing could go wrong with it, but Jiraiya and Sakumo's presence in the country complicated things. They obviously recognized the similarities between the ROOT and ANBU masks if their message to Hiruzen was any indication. Danzo couldn't allow his hand in the plot to be discovered or all of his plans would go down the drain. He had worked too hard on his plans to have them disappear. So Danzo decided to bid his time and wait, he would help Hanzo, but only after he made sure he could get away with it without giving up his position.

A new light burned in Danzo's black eyes as he reached over to pick up a nearly empty folder. It was Namikaze Naru's folder, learning Naru was Minato's daughter wasn't a shock to Danzo, but it made him want her all the more. He was simply waiting patiently for his time to strike, but he would eventually have her. He put the folder back on his desk and turned to look at his newest recruit, a young boy with light grey hair.

"Welcome to ROOT. Your name shall be Shin."

* * *

A tall man with long blond hair and a vertical scar along his right cheek looked at the foreign shinobi with distaste in his eyes. It didn't sit well with him that Danzo backed out at the last minute. The faux meeting was taking place within the next few weeks and the plans couldn't be changed unless it makes the rebellion leaders suspicious. Hanzo sighed deeply before clutching the glass of wine in his hand 'til the glass splintered.

"Fine, tell Danzo my plans remain the same. I will take care of my problems and maybe next time he can help me."

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

It took us two days of backtracking and running in almost complete circles before Jiraiya and Sensei were satisfied that the strange shinobi weren't following us. Once we were on the outskirts of the village, Jiraiya led us to a rock formation that would serve as our shelter for the night. It gave us cover from the rain and was drier than the outside world. Our clothes were drenched through and I could feel the shivers working their way up my spine. Toward the back of the rocks, we chanced making a fire and hoped no one would see the light. Those strange shinobi could still be lurking around. Once the fire was blazing and we were in dry clothes, we sat down around the fire and ate the rest of the food the ladies at the Inn prepared for our journey.

Originally the bento was filled with sweet bread and meats, but those wouldn't last very long as we were traveling, so we ate those the first day. Now all we had left was the dried fruits and vegetables. There was also some rice, but it was now cold and sticky. I ate it regardless; there was no telling when we would get another chance to eat something besides ration bars.

Sensei finished eating his first and watched the rain pound against the rocks outside. His eyes flicked over to Jiraiya's, "How did you know about this place? We would have never found it in this downpour."

Jiraiya sighed before putting down his chopsticks. "Because I've been here before."

Sensei blinked in shock, "Really? Why?"

"Shortly after Tsunade, Orochimaru, and I gained the title of 'Sannin', we were traveling through Amegakure and came upon three orphans. We found them here; they were hiding out and trying to survive. Starved and probably not very much older than Naru, but they were already hardened by the Second Shinobi War. I trained them."

I dropped my bento box in surprise, "You trained students besides Dad?"

He nodded, "Nagato, Yahiko, and Konan. Together they were the 'Ame Orphans'."

"What happened to them?"

"I don't really know. They became Amegakure shinobi and I have a feeling they're the ones planning this rebellion. Yahiko wanted peace and the other two are sure to follow him wherever he goes."

I smiled, "Maybe we'll see them while we're here."

"Perhaps. Okay, who's taking first watch?"

Sensei raised his hand, "I'll do it. You two go on and get some sleep."

I didn't think it would be easy to fall asleep, but it was. The rain against the rocks was actually a very soothing sound. I didn't wake up until Jiraiya woke me up to take the last watch. I liked taking the last watch mostly because it allowed me some time to mentally prepare for the day. I wasn't a book smart shinobi, I learned by hands on experience. That was just my learning style. I liked to read, but only what I was interested in. When I was younger, I loathed reading about the history of Konoha, but as I got older I discovered the enjoyment I could get out of it. Anyway, I usually took my watch time to try and work on my chakra control. I always summoned three clones and set two of them to guarding us while myself and another clone meditated. I knew using chakra could lead others to us, so I just focused on clearing my mind and getting mentally prepared for the day.

It stopped raining just as the sun began to rise, but I couldn't see it through the clouding overhead. I could feel it in the gradual change of temperature. I looked over at the sleeping forms of my teammates and decided to let them sleep a little while longer. We had a busy day today.

Slowly, Sensei began waking up as the temperature in the cave continued to rise slightly. His mask was down around his neck and with his nose being so sensitive he could easily pick up on the changes. I guess that was one of the downsides of being a tracker.

"Mornin' Naru."

"Good morning Sensei!"

He stretched as he walked over to sit beside me. "Jiraiya and I talked last night about your training. He and I have some infiltration work we need to do inside Amegakure so you're going to start on your training with the miner. He lives in a small community not too far from here. Jiraiya's already contacted him and he's expecting you. He's an older man Naru and alone, so don't expect him to be very nice. Even Jiraiya says he's an eccentric old coot."

I scrunched my nose up in dislike. I didn't need another ornery old man ranting at me. "Can't I go with you two?"

Sensei shook his head, "Sorry kiddo, but no. He grew up around the mines and knows exactly what you're working with. Listen to him Naru, closely. Respect him and maybe you'll be able to charm him into liking you."

I sighed and pouted openly. "Damn."

Sensei chuckled, "Don't let your father hear you say that."

I gave Sensei a grin before winking at him, "What he doesn't know won't hurt him."

"Whatever you say Naru."

After Jiraiya woke up, we traveled a few short miles away from the rock formation before coming up on an old, rickety shack. It looked like something out of a horror movie, except bigger. Exactly like those houses the killers store the bodies in so they can later come back and have weird rituals with the decaying bodies. I walked a little close to Sensei as we passed through the broken down fence and walked into the yard. They weren't going to leave me here, where they?

Jiraiya was the one that knocked on the door and talked to the black shadow just inside the doorway. I couldn't get a good look at him, but Sensei could see him and nodded in the man's direction. He grabbed my shoulder and firmly pushed me forward. I wanted to turn around and glare at him, but instead I walked forward to stand beside Jiraiya.

"Tsutomu, this is Namikaze Naru. Naru, this is the man that worked the mines of Ame since he was a small child. He'll be your teacher for a few weeks."

I showed no hesitancy as I looked into the darkness to see the old man, but I couldn't see anything except the inky blackness. I could hear his labored breathing though. Something scrapped along the floor and I watched as a wooden cane appeared into the light. The wood was carved with all kinds of intricate seals and designs. The cane continued closer to me until it touched my right shin. I felt a jolt of chakra enter me before the cane hastily retreated. The man's labored breathing increased and now included a slight wheeze whenever he began to talk.

"You. Weren't. Lying." He stopped and breathed a little heavier. "She's young."

Jiraiya nodded, "Yes, but she needs to learn. We have to leave her here for a few weeks so we can continue our mission. She's well-behaved and won't get into your way too much, if you keep her busy."

The man sighed and more shifting was heard. "Fine. She better be ready to work hard. Naru, when you've said your goodbyes come in." He entered the house and closed the door behind him.

I stared in shock at the closed door. Jiraiya patted my shoulder. "Good luck kid."

I shook my head furiously, "You're not leaving me here with the man in the shadows. I didn't even see him. What if he's some serial killer that preys on little girls?"

Jiraiya sighed as Sensei came to stand beside us. "I agree with Naru, this is a little creepy Jiraiya."

Jiraiya shook his head, "Tsutomu just has some issues that make him eccentric. He's harmless and I've already checked to make sure he's really Tsutomu. No one knows he's here and no one can copy his actions. You'll be fine, but you're going to have to earn his trust before you ever meet him."

I looked in disbelief at Jiraiya. How was I supposed to live with and learn from a man I couldn't see? This was almost too much for my 'okay scale'. I looked back at Sensei and saw the unease in his eyes. I knew Dad wouldn't be happy with him after finding out he just left me with some creepy old man. "Okay, I'm going to leave one of the ninken behind, just for extra protection. I'll leave Tobias behind. Will that comfort you more Naru?"

I nodded as Jiraiya scoffed. Sensei summoned the brown wolf and gave Tobias his newest orders. "She's going to be fine without the dog, but do what you want."

Tobias growled low at being called a dog, but was shushed by Sakumo-sensei. He patted Tobias's head once before reaching over to ruffle my hair. "Good luck Naru. If you need anything tell Tobias and I'll be here as soon as possible."

I nodded and watched them leave. It wasn't raining today and the clouds were starting to reside, but the ground was still wet from the downpour last night. I kicked a puddle as I watched them leave until I couldn't see their outlines anymore. Well, I was left with only one option. Enter the house and meet mister creepy man. Tobias must have noticed my nervousness because he gently nuzzled my leg with his muzzle and whined.

I scratched him behind the ears. "It's gonna be okay." I didn't know whether I was trying to assure him or myself. After taking a deep breath, I walked over to the door and walked into the darkness.

"I'm glad you decided to come inside. I was afraid you wouldn't want to come in. This house has certain rules. Rule number one; never fully turn on the lights. Rule Number two; don't stick your nose where it doesn't belong. "

The inside of the house was just as dark as the outside. It was like everything was bathed in blackness. I could hear his voice coming from my right and knew he was in the same room. I didn't get an uneasy feeling with him though. "I almost didn't. All of this is a little too much. Why don't you want the lights on?"

The scraping sound returned. "I don't like lights."

"Well I do."

"Life isn't run by what we want. You'll suck it up or you can leave." The sound got louder as I continued walking forward. "Don't go any further. There's a hole in the floor."

I stopped everything and turned to glare in the direction I thought he was in. "What the hell! Are you trying to kill me?"

He laughed at me. It was a wet sound that didn't suit his dry voice. "No, if I would have wanted that then I would have let you continue walking forward. That hole leads into a pit that's twenty-five feet deep."

My eyes widened in the darkness and I could swear my heart skipped a few beats as he said that. I was officially convinced he was crazy. Tobias whined by my leg and pawed gently at the floor in front of us. "What do you expect me to do?"

He laughed again. "Your training starts now. This is how my father trained me and this is how I'm going to train you. This house is completely booby trapped with over one hundred dips, turns, and holes that are commonly found in mines. You survive in here then you can survive in any mine in Ame."

I growled lowly at his trick. "There's a difference here though. I have never seen the layout of the house, never. I don't know where I'm going or even where all the rooms are."

"Well, it's just like being in a mine. You've never seen those layouts either."

I shook my head, even though I was sure he couldn't see me. "At least then I have lights."

He made a humming noise. "Yes, but what happens if the electricity doesn't work in the mines?"

"Fire jutsu."

"Wrong. There will most likely be underground gases that would blow your little blonde tail away. You're treading on dangerous waters bringing anything into a mine, especially when you're not trained. Now, your eyes will adjust as time goes on, but until then you'll just have to figure out your way around."

I sighed, "What about sleep? Will I have to make sure you didn't do something to the bed?"

He chuckled this time. "The bedrooms are free of any traps. I may be cruel, but not that cruel. I'll give you tasks to complete during the day that you will probably encounter in an actual mine. Your first one is to find that hole and get across it. Oh and your canine friend can't help you."

This man has to be kidding me. He wants me to find a hole and get across it without falling and breaking my neck. "What happens when I get across the hole?"

"I'll feed you and show you the safe passage to your bedroom."

I thought over it before sighing and agreeing. Slowly, one tiny step at a time, I inched forward. My entire body was tensed as I continued feeling around for any sudden drop with my foot. I stopped a few inches from my original position and sighed. This wasn't working at all.

I tried a different approach and got down on my hands and knees. From there I crawled forward with the same slow pace until the tips of my fingers hit the ragged edges of the hole. I grinned in victory before putting my hand out and seeing if I could reach the other side. It was too far across. I had no way of know how far across the hole was and couldn't risk jumping it.

"Okay, I found it. Now what?"

"I knew it wouldn't take you that long, but I'm kind of saddened that you got on your hands and knees to find the hole. You could have easily found it while walking. Now try and get over it."

I looked at my hands and gripped the edge of the floor. If I lowered myself down and jumped across then I could make it, if my chakra stuck. It was the only idea I could come up with. So I lowered myself down and stuck my hands and feet to the carved out walls of the floor. The house was obviously built right on top of the ground and the hole broke through the floor and down deep into the ground below. Taking a deep breath, I propelled myself from the wall and blindly reached for any solid object I could. My hands didn't find any.

Freefalling was not fun; especially when I was so sure my body was going to splatter against the hard ground below. Surprisingly, though, my body hit net before it ever hit rope. The net bounced a few times before stilling and groaning in protest.

The old man from above sighed deeply in disappointment. "You didn't think that through. You didn't even know how far away the other wall was and just assumed that the wall would be there. You're lucky I anticipated that or you would have died. I'm sending down a lantern, but the fluid in it is limited. Use it wisely. Now get back up here so I can start teaching you."

Begrudgingly, I watched as the lit lantern fell down from the top of the hole. Catching it before it hit the rope; I lifted it up and looked at the hole. While the hole wasn't wide, I could almost reach both sides with my arms outstretched, it was long. Spanning what looked to be an entire hallway. I looked up at the blackness above me. "Are holes really this long in the Ame mines?"

"I've seen three longer than this. The miners used to carve the holes out and pump water into them in case the mines caught fire. There was always a pool located in the middle of the newer mines for safety reasons."

"Oh." I looked at the lantern before blowing out the flame and beginning the climb up the side of the wall. It didn't take long to reach the top, but when I did I wanted to kiss the ground.

"Lesson number one. Never, ever, jump across a fissure like that especially when you don't know how deep it is or how long it is. You were almost asking for death or injury." I looked down, slightly ashamed at his words as he started shuffling things around. Something was thrown to my feet and I quickly reached down to pick it up. "That's the strongest rope I've ever had the pleasure of using. It's your lifeline." Something heavier was thrown at my feet. "That is pretty much the same thing as a grappling hook."

I picked the small metal contraption up and shifted it in my hands. It was round, but didn't have the arms like a grappling hook had. "This doesn't feel like a grappling hook."

"It, like the rope, are both used with chakra. You pushed you chakra into the device so it opens and sticks better to whatever you get it caught on. The rope becomes even stronger than before too. Never go into a mine without these two items. Retry it."

I sighed before got ready. I took the end of the rope and carefully tied it to the end of the grappling hook. My eyesight was adjusting easier to the darkness and I could see my knot, but not much else. With the other end of the rope looped around my hand, I took the end with the grappling hook and threw it across the hole. I smiled when I heard the metal clank against the ground.

"Good job, you made it to the other side. Now pull the rope until the hook catches onto something. Once it catches, give it a couple of hard tugs to make sure it will support your weight."

I did and after a few tugs and pulls the hook wouldn't move anymore. It was caught on something across the hole. "What now?"

"Now, you do something you were supposed to do in the very beginning. Find out how deep the fissure is and how long it is. Drop something into the fissure and wait for the sound of it hitting. The longer it takes to hear the sound then the further the drop is."

I did as he wished and waited until I heard the clear sound of the rock hitting the ground below. It was deep, very deep. "You said twenty-five feet, right?"

"Yes. Now for length, it's really guesswork. The rope is fifty feet exactly. Use the rope to tell me how many feet across it is."

I had a lot of rope left so I blindly guess. "Umm, thirty feet?"

"Close, the length of the fissure is actually forty feet in length."

I turned to look at the man in disbelief. "There is no way your hallway is forty feet in length. This house isn't that big."

I could practically hear the smile in his voice as he asked 'how would you know'. "You just saw the front of the house. You never saw the back of it because most of it is under a genjutsu thanks to Jiraiya."

He was right about that, but it made me wonder why Jiraiya would go through the trouble of helping this mysterious old man that I had yet to see. "What now?"

"Get across."

I sighed deeply before tugging on the rope, it was stuck, but there was still the question of getting across it. If I tried to swing across then I was either going to hit the ground or the wall. I also couldn't tie it off because I needed to keep the rope with me. That's when it hit me, kage bunshin. I could get one of my bunshins to untie the rope after I made it across. Mentally I rejoiced because I was determined to get across this hole.

I quickly made the clone and got her to stand with the tied rope end. With the length tight, I slowly began my journey across. My back was to the darkness of the hole with my arms and legs wrapped around the rope. I scooted my way down the rope until I touched the opposite wall with one of my feet. Very slowly, I eased myself off of the rope and onto the floor. I gave the order and my clone untied the rope before disappearing.

"Congratulations, you didn't die today. Put away your rope and hook before walking into the door on your right. There will be a single candle on the table so you can see while you eat."

I reached into my weapons pouch and pulled out a storage scroll to place my rope and hook into. With that done, I practically raced into the room to find the candle. It was eerie how the food and drink were all set out, but Tsutomu was nowhere to be seen. It gave me chills to think about the eeriness of not only the house, but the entire situation. With nothing else to do, I ate slowly.

He prepared a nice meal of grilled fish and stew, but everything that just happened to me was finally catching up with my body. I felt exhausted and wanted nothing more than to sleep. "Tsutomu-sensei? Where is my bedroom?"

"Leave the kitchen and walk into the opposite room. There's your bed and bathroom. It also has several lanterns for light, just in case you want it. Sleep tight Naru, we start bright and early tomorrow."

For some reason, him saying bright and early was humorous to me, because there wasn't anything in this place that was bright. I walked cautiously into my new bedroom and closed the door behind me. The darkness was closing in on me and I hurriedly found a lantern to turn on. The small room erupted into light which made me feel instantly better. I sighed deeply before walking over to the bed and collapsing on it. I fell asleep before I could even turn the lantern off.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Two long weeks passed with Naru training hard to understand everything Tsutomu was trying to teach her. He had turned his entire house into a practical mine with every since twist and turn Naru could ever imagine. The danger was very real, as shown when she miss stepped while trying to walk across a ledge in one of the back rooms. Her leg was scrapped horribly and bleeding badly by the time she made it across, but with her healing it was easily healed. The injury, though, was her first wakeup call. She knew Tsutomu wasn't playing about what he was teaching her.

Tobias had unfortunately been exiled to outside the house because Naru feared he would injure himself trying to keep up with her, not that she didn't think he could do it, but she just wanted him to stay safely outside. He did always manage to find his way back into the house by nightfall so he could sleep with Naru in her room. After the first night, Tobias was a constant bed partner. With his presence there, she wasn't as freaked out by the darkness of the house.

Naru still has yet to see the ominous voice that was instructing her. He always seemed to know whenever she tried to cut corners and would always guide and answer her questions with a patient voice. Tsutomu also made sure she got plenty of rest and food. He wasn't cruel, but he wasn't the most lovable person either.

"Naru, today we're going to work on gases. Come into the main room."

The only bad thing about the house was that you had to cross the giant hole in the hallway if you wanted to get into the main room. Naru was definitely getting her practice in with learning to use her rope and hook. She entered the main room and sat on the only couch in the room. She discovered it on her third day after she tripped over her rope. Tsutomu laughed at her for the next five minutes as she tried to wrestle herself out of the rope.

"You said gases right?"

The scraping sound returned as her teacher moved around the room. Naru could see a lot better than she had the first day, but she had yet to see her mysterious sensei. Even though she couldn't see him, she could hear and feel him. Whenever he moved there were several scraping noises and depending on where he was at, his breathing would be labored. The further away from the main room, the worse his breathing was. Another thing she noticed was his attitude. Whenever he was close to the main room, he was nice and not the ornery old man Naru thought he was going to be, but when we was further away, he was almost downright mean. It made Naru wonder what was up with him.

"Yes. Do you know of any gases that would potentially be found in a mine?"

"Nope not at all."

Tsutomu chuckled before tossing her a book. Naru's perception of the world around her and senses had gotten a whole lot better since she was almost constantly bathed in darkness. She could almost feel the way the air moved around the book as it flew towards her. She caught it in one hand and weighted it gently. It wasn't a very heavy book, nor was it thick, but it felt old.

"Tomorrow I'm sending you outside because it's not good for a girl your age to stay constantly in the darkness. So you can read that tomorrow while you're playing with the mutt."

"He's a wolf you know."

He chuckled, "I know, but I know he can hear me because I can hear him growling. I've got to hand it to him, he's loyal."

Naru nodded and pocketed the book. "He's a ninken of my Sensei's, of course he's loyal." Naru sighed before looking in the direction of her teacher. "Did you ever have a dog?"

"Yes." Naru noticed his voice took on a softer tone. "We called him Dai because he was this huge dog, twice as big as your mutt. He saved my life a few years back."

"What happened to him?"

"He died in a rock slide. I tried to get him out, but only ended up making everything worse and getting myself injured." He abruptly stopped talking and his wheezing increased. Naru surprisingly noticed that his wheezing was different this time around and it made her wonder if he was crying.

Feeling the sadness surrounding the man, Naru stood from the couch and walked to where he was at. A quick strike to her shin with his cane had Naru stopped in her tracks. "Ouch! Why did you do that?"

"I don't need your comfort. You're done for the day."

"I thought we were going to talk about gases?"

"Go. Now."

Naru huffed before taking off toward her room.

* * *

Sakumo and Jiraiya were busy keeping a very close eye on Hanzo and his dealings, but their task was extremely hard. Hanzo never let anyone near him without being thoroughly searched and always had twelve guards with him at any given time. So they waited and patiently worked around their difficulties to find out a little more about the rebellion.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

Tobias was settled happily in my bed whenever I woke up. I couldn't help but wonder how he got over the gigantic hole in the floor. He refused to tell me and I know he didn't just fly over it. There had to be some type of entrance somewhere that bypassed all of that. I didn't have time to search for the passage, though, I had reading to do.

Being outside for the first time in weeks was hard on my eyes. It took a few minutes before they adjusted to the outside world. It wasn't sunny, but it felt that way to my eyes because they were used to the near-total darkness of the house. I did finally figure out why Tsutomu kept the house dark, he was trying to simulate a mine with the complete darkness, clever but annoying.

Tobias eventually walked from inside the house and laid beside me as I opened the book and looked down the list of contents. There were many different gases that could be found inside of a mine. Some were very deadly while others weren't so deadly. A few minutes into reading about methane I realized that gases weren't as interesting as I originally thought they were going to be. In fact, they were boring.

I sighed before closing the book and looking down at Tobias. "This isn't going as well as I thought it would." He gave me a pointed look before nosing the book in my lap. The unspoken 'read' hanging in the air between us. I pouted at him. "Fine."

Lucky for me, it started sprinkling. Tobias looked up at the sky in disbelief before snorting and turning to walk into the house. I followed behind him quickly as the rain started to pick up. Once inside the house, I noticed something different. There was a small amount of light coming into the room from underneath a door that I had never seen before. The little bit of light bathed the room and I could easily make out some of the features of the room.

The couch was along the left side of the room, but there were also a couple of chairs there as well. Along the right side were several bookshelves and a very strange metal pole. I blinked in shock as I felt the pole and tried to figure out what it was. Tsutomu obviously didn't like the lights in his house and I couldn't help but wonder if there was a reason behind it. With a slightly shaking hand, I reached onto my belt and unhooked the lantern there. I continued to look at the closed door as I switched the light on and looked at the contraption in front of me.

Everything was set up like a medical tent. The bookshelves actually housed several first aid supplies including bandages and pain pills. The metal pole was actually an IV pole with the bag of fluid attached to the top. The IV was beside a comfortable looking chair with a huge oxygen tank beside it.

"Didn't I tell you to not stick your nose where it doesn't belong?"

My entire body tensed as I heard his question and noticed the light was gone. Only my light remained in the entire room, lighting up the area in front of me. I could hear the anger in his voice and feel the shaking in his hand as he grabbed my shoulder and snatched the lantern from me.

"I was just curious. I wanted to know what was going on."

The blackness returned and I felt him gently shove past me to sit in the chair. "You want to know what's going on? Too damn bad. Get out of here until I call you back."

I took a step back at the obvious anger in his voice, but I knew something wasn't right. I squared my stance and glared in his direction. "No. What's going on? Are you sick? Let me help you."

"Leave now."

One again, I shook my head and began fumbling along the wall. This used to be a house so there had to be some type of light switch somewhere. My hand finally touched the switch and without a second thought, I flipped it on.

The room was completely bathed in blinding light. I had to blink my eyes several times to help them adjust to the sudden brightness. Once my eyes were adjusted, I looked around the room and saw old furniture and walls with peeling black paint. The windows were all blacked out and several of the bookshelves were covered in black drapery. It looked like something out of a funeral.

I could easily see the gigantic hole spanning the hallway, as well as a door leading into what I believed was the passage Tobias used. It was propped open with a chair. The other door, the one the light was coming from, was closed and dead bolted. The only place left to look was the makeshift medical station behind me.

Ever so slowly I turned around and saw the man that was my mining teacher. He was a hardened old man with dark brown skin and heavy burn scars along his uncovered arms. His right leg was secured in a metal brace that encased his entire leg, from mid-thigh to foot. That would explain the scraping sound I kept hearing, it was his brace scraping against the floor. His other leg looked healthy, but had a slight curve to it. He must have had a really bad accident to end up in that kind of shape. I looked up at him and found his face buried in his hands, or what was left of them. His left hand was missing three fingers while his right was missing two.

"Just run away, everyone else does."

I shook my head and took another step forward. Was this the real reason he lived in darkness? Was my original guess of the darkness being just for my experience wrong? With the condition of his legs, I couldn't help but wonder how he accomplished all of this. His scars were old and I knew they were once painful.

"What can I do to help?"

His entire body tensed and very slowly he looked up at me. The scars on his face weren't too bad, but he wasn't the prettiest thing in the world. They gave him character, though, and showed he was tough enough to survive whatever caused them. His eyebrows were completely gone, as were his eyelashes and hair, but it wasn't as strange of a look as I would have originally thought. It fit with his scars and body.

His breathing was almost erratic now. I looked down and saw an oxygen mask on the arm of his chair. I reached down and picked it up for him. He took it and looked at me in disbelief before sucking in a deep breath of oxygen.

"You're not scared? All of the nurses are."

I gave him a bright smile. "I'm no nurse. I'm a kunoichi, we dig guys with scars."

He laughed and took my hand. "Jiraiya said you were different when we talked at the door. He said I wouldn't need to hide from you because you wouldn't think twice about how I looked. I should have listened. I think it's time I properly introduced myself, I am Tsutomu the miner."

"I'm Namikaze Naru. It's nice to finally meet you Tsutomu."

Once we kind of got over the awkwardness of the situation, Tsutomu started explaining why he did the things he did. His home hadn't always been filled with caverns and booby traps, but after Jiraiya contacted him, he had wanted to make sure I was completely educated about those mines. He said he didn't want me to make the same mistakes he did. So with a few of his friends that still visited with him, they tore through the house and destroyed the beautiful place just for my training. Tsutomu couldn't do much himself, but he did supervise the entire thing.

He hid himself because of the reactions he always got from the nurses that came to take care of him the first few weeks after his accident. Eventually he learned how to take care of himself so he wouldn't have to see them averting their eyes. He told me that he just sort of expected that behavior now and just preferred to live in the dark where no one would see him.

I couldn't help but ask how he knew Jiraiya. Apparently those two went back a long time. Jiraiya's father was actually a friend of Tsutomu, but they lost touch. Jiraiya found him in a horrible state after traveling to tell the man about his father's death. Since Jiraiya was an up and coming seals master, he practiced some of his seals on certain items in Tsutomu's house. Like his cane, Tsutomu's eyesight was failing so with a small bolt of chakra into the cane he could easily see whoever it touched. The house was another thing Jiraiya placed seals on. Jiraiya's seals caused the house to look no better than an abandoned shack. It gave Tsutomu the privacy and protection he needed without much trouble.

Finally, I asked the big question. "How did you get injured?"

He gave me a rueful smile that made his scars stretch. "Mine accident. I know you didn't get very far on that book about gases, so for the next few days we're going to work on that. The last time I was in a mine, I didn't pay attention to the gases inside and lit a lantern. I not only hurt myself, but hurt others. I can't let you make a similar mistake." I nodded and opened the book to the first gas, methane. He nodded at the page, "Methane is a tricky gas. It's lighter than air so it's always near the roof of the mine and it's colorless."

For the next week we worked on the mechanics of a mine and the dangers of the gases. I felt really lucky that Kakashi and I hadn't blown ourselves up while we were in that mine. We very easily could have. Tsutomu made sure he was thorough on his teaching about the gases. The gases were actually the reason he needed to use oxygen and couldn't stand for very long without wheezing. Once that flame ignited, it blew up in his face and caused him to suck in air. When he sucked in the air, he also sucked in some gases that burned the lining of his lungs. There wasn't a decent medic-nin around so the man never fully healed and was reduced to simply living with this oxygen tank at his side.

His lesson about gases was the one he took deadly serious, even more serious than anything else. He even started going as far as to quiz me over different aspects of the gases.

"What poisonous gas smells like rotten eggs?"

I thought long and hard about it before answering. "Hydrogen Sulfide."

"Good job. Now, what gas is found near roofs and cavities?"

"Methane."

He nodded happily before handing me a glass of water. "Excellent. You're learning these easily." He looked away from me before quickly turning to look back at me. "You've learned everything I can teach you. Everything from safety to the mechanics of the mines."

It was true. After I discovered his secret, we spent hours poring over old maps of the mines, as well as old pictures taken by him and his father. From his stories I knew how the miners built the mines and how they lived in them. Everything I was learning from Tsutomu would be combined with what I learn from my demolition teacher so we could continue the tunnel operation.

"What's left?"

"Nothing. You're ready to go back to the mines." A knock sounded on the door and Tobias howled happily. Tsutomu grinned, "Looks like just in time too. Three weeks is a short amount of time, but you learned well." He limped over to the bookshelf and took down an old book. "This is a reference book if you ever feel like you're getting rusty. Good luck with everything Naru, it's been a pleasure teaching you."

I smiled brightly at him before going over to his chair and wrapping him up in a hug. He hugged back and reluctantly let go. "What are you going to do now? Will someone repair your house?"

He shook his head, "I have a son that's been begging me for years to come live with him, but I refused. I think it's time to end my self-imposed exile and leave this place behind. Scars or no scars."

I gently squeezed his hand and walked towards the door. I waved goodbye to the man before opening the door and practically running into a man that wasn't my sensei. Instead it was a younger man with the same tanned skin of Tsutomu. He smiled at me before bowing and stepping around me to step inside the room.

"Dad, let's go home."

I smiled to myself before looking around and finding Sensei and Jiraiya standing beside the house, both deep in conversation. I raised an eyebrow at both of them; this wasn't the greeting I expected.

"Hello? You haven't seen me in three weeks and all you can do is talk amongst yourselves?"

Sensei smiled and walked over to ruffle my hair. "We missed you Naru. Have fun?"

I looked back at the house and nodded, "More fun than I've had in a while."

Jiraiya sighed before looking towards the west. "We don't have the time to waste Sakumo."

"Chill Jiraiya, she just got back. We have enough time to say 'hello'."

I noticed the tense between the two. "What's going on?"

Sensei sighed, "Let's move away from here and we'll explain what we found out."

I nodded and we finally began moving away from the house. Sensei stopped us a few miles away and pointed towards the outline of a small town. "The leader of Amegakure is a man named Hanzo. He's a horrible man with a lot of paranoia problems, not to mention he's doing his citizens wrong. With Ame being so close to Konoha, it would be in our best interests if Hanzo wasn't in office, but we couldn't do anything about it until now. There's a rebellion group being led by three teenagers and Hanzo isn't too pleased to hear about it, but Konoha is."

Jiraiya snorted, "Understatement of the year."

Sensei rolled his eyes at Jiraiya and continued, "He has plans to lure the leaders into a fake meeting within the next few months so we've got to find them and warn them. We need them to take Hanzo's place."

"Okay, well let's go. How hard could it be to find them?"

Jiraiya laughed harshly, "I trained them. If they don't want to be found then they're not going to be found. We have three months to find them before the meeting takes place and if we can't find them, then I fear what will happen."

I nodded and retied my headband around my forehead. "Let's get on it then."

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Two months into the search, the Konoha group still had yet to find the Ame group. They followed rumors and fake trails only to come up empty handed the entire time. None of Jiraiya's informants had a clue to where the group was, only that they existed. The Konoha trio was coming up short as the days started to fly by and get closer to the meeting date. Jiraiya feared they wouldn't find them at all until the day actually came for the meeting. Unfortunately, that ended up being just the case.

As the group neared the small town where the meeting was taking place, they took out their traveler's cloaks to hurriedly slip on. They didn't have to change clothes because the cloaks covered their bodies, but they did have to remove anything that would distinguish them as Konoha shinobi. They also removed their headbands and vests and covered their heads with the attached hoods. Many people were walking around with hooded heads because of the rainy weather, so it wasn't a strange sight. The rain started up again just as the group found the patch of dirt where the meeting would take place at. The only thing marking it was a slightly raised platform with a rather dead looking olive tree planted a few feet away. Naru found it ironic that the olive tree would mark the place for a meeting between the leader of the village and leader of the rebellion against said village.

She could feel the electricity buzzing in the air and within her body. The last few months of searching where coming down to this exact moment. They needed to either warn the rebel leaders or protect them. Each of them had their own specific orders and their own place to wait to scout out the crowd. Sakumo took a place somewhere close to the front of the crowd so he could hear everything the two leaders said. Jiraiya decided to stay in the middle so he could listen to the conversations around him. Naru was placed towards the back and told to make sure nothing suspicious happened. She knew it was Jiraiya's way of telling her to stay out of the way. Part of her wanted to yell at him, but the other part was already thinking up a prank for Jiraiya.

"What's a little kid like you doing here?"

Naru blinked in surprise before turning to look up at a taller boy. He looked to be about fifteen-years-old and had shocking orange hair. He too was wearing a cloak, but Naru could see bits of a shinobi uniform peeking from his neckline. The boy was also sporting an umbrella which he was using to shield Naru from the rain. Naru couldn't believe her luck; Yahiko was standing right beside her. Jiraiya had vividly described all of them and Naru couldn't exactly place her finger on it, but she knew him from somewhere. Something was off about him, though, but she could barely remember him from somewhere else. It was driving her crazy to not be able to remember who the teen was to her.

"You okay kid?"

Naru glared, "Yeah, I'm good. The name's Naru, not kid."

The orange haired boy held up both hands, "Chill Naru. I'm Yahiko."

Naru's eyes widened, "I know. You're one of the rebel leaders."

He nodded, "Yeah, what of it?"

"Nothing. A friend of mine mentioned you."

"That friend wouldn't have happened to be Jiraiya-sensei would it?"

Naru's eyes widened slightly as her head quickly turned to stare at the newcomer. The new, quieter voice belonged to a red haired boy that looked to be the same age as Yahiko. Automatically, Naru knew his name, he was Nagato.

"Perhaps."

Yahiko wasn't paying Naru any attention anymore, because he was looking at the platform. A tall man with long blond hair had appeared and was waiting. Yahiko gave Nagato a look before biding Naru a quick goodbye and walking to the front of the crowd. Naru watched in fascination as the crowd parted for him. She tried to get his attention back, but the crowd rushed back together and cut her off from him. Nagato didn't follow and instead looked around the crowd. Naru watched his eyes light up as he saw a blue haired girl. Nagato was her last chance; she was walking towards him when all Hell broke loose.

The crowd erupted into screams as smoke began billowing from the middle and sides of the crowd. Naru coughed violently to clear her lungs as she searched for Sakumo or Jiraiya. She couldn't find them through the haze and ended up having to stop looking because visibility was so poor. By the time the smoke cleared, she was met with a very desolate scene. The blue haired girl, Konan, was being held captive by an Ame shinobi. A kunai was pressed against her neck and a small dribble of blood fell down her neckline. Yahiko was also being held by Ame shinobi, but there was no weapon turned on him. His hands were held firmly behind his back and no matter how hard he struggled, he wasn't able to get free.

Hanzo laughed as he looked out over the remaining crowd. "This is what happens when you try to go against me." He turned to Nagato, who was standing on the edge at the edge of the crowd with tears in his eyes and running down his cheeks. "Nagato, come here. I've got a proposition for you."

Naru watched intently as Nagato walked closer and looked between Konan and Yahiko. "Let them go!"

"I don't think so. We'll let Konan go if you kill Yahiko."

Naru's eyes widened at the cascading tears falling form Nagato's eyes and the pure anger and determination in Yahiko's. Hanzo thrust a kunai into Nagato's hand and forced him to hold it towards Yahiko's chest. Yahiko looked over at the slowly bleeding Konan and back to Nagato. Naru could clearly see the decision in his eyes as he suddenly jerked his body forward. Konan's anguished voice rang throughout the entire town.

"YAHIKO!"


	34. Oneshot 3

**Oneshot 3**

* * *

Beautiful hues of red and orange blossomed across the light blue sky as the sun slowly settled beneath glowing clouds. The same clouds that spanned across the sky and sharply contrasted against the darkening heavens. Giving the clouds the appearance of fiery streaks as the world saw its final moments of day before settling into the relaxed harmony of night. The darkened portions of the sky already scattered ever so lightly with shining stars that looked more like tiny fireflies than massive clusters of celestial bodies.

Naru sighed contently as she watched the scene above her, only a summer sunset could give such a spectacular show as the one she was watching from her back porch. With her right foot dangling over the edge of the porch and her back towards the door, Naru continued to get lost in the sight above her. In all of her twenty years she had seen many beautiful sunsets, but this one was indescribable. It was almost like something straight from a postcard or painting. As twilight crept faster onto Konoha, more colors erupted in the sky. Purples and pinks mixed with the blistering reds and oranges to create a perfect mesh of colors in the sky. Naru felt like she was watching an intricate dance that she could never possibly begin to learn or understand.

It struck her to her very core and captured her complete attention. Naru became so enthralled by the display that she found herself holding her breath as the colors shifted in the sky and slowly darkened into the unmistakable black of night. The finale of the sunset disappointed the blonde kunoichi, but all good things have to come to an end for them to be truly appreciated. Besides, being completely oblivious to the world around you isn't a good idea, especially when your lover is Hatake Kakashi.

The sunset was soon thrown from Naru's mind as a pair of strong arms wrapped around her middle and pulled her to sit between the legs of a silver haired man. "I'm home."

Naru knew exactly who was holding her tightly without having to turn around and look. Only Kakashi's presence wouldn't set off her honed shinobi senses and only Kakashi's presence could make her knees weak with that indescribable warm, fuzzy feeling. The same feeling she got whenever he would gently intertwine his fingers with hers as they walked together around the crowded marketplace or whenever he would ever so slowly comb his fingers through her hair after a stressful day. It was the little butterflies she still got whenever she woke up in the morning to find herself wrapped up in his arms and the traitorous blush that refused to die down whenever he would breathlessly tell her that she was beautiful. It was the heat that raced up and down her spine as his fingertips would knead the flesh at her hips as his lips did sinful things to her body. It was the same feeling she got whenever she made him moan.

"Welcome home. How was the mission?"

Kakashi didn't immediately answer and Naru knew something hadn't gone as planned. Her lover may not be in ANBU any longer, but he was still a top jounin with difficult missions. And knowing Kakashi as long as Naru had, she knew he took things personally whenever something didn't go right for his team. So instead of pushing him to talk, Naru silently waited until she felt one of Kakashi's hands leave her waist and reach to pull down his mask. His other hand treaded through her hair before moving it off of her right shoulder, leaving him with a perfect view of the curve of her neck. Before Naru could say anything, Kakashi's mouth attacked her neck. Teeth and tongue battled against her flesh as she reached behind her to pull his head closer and instinctively bared her neck to him.

"Tenzo was hurt because I wasn't fast enough to make it to him in time. If I would have been faster then maybe he wouldn't be unconscious in the hospital." Kakashi harshly spoke against her neck and hissed before nipping gently around her pulsing vein.

Naru closed her eyes before roughly pushing his head away from her neck and turning to stare deep into his eyes. Her hands rested strongly on his shoulders as she attempted her best glare despite the fact that she was sure her face was bright red from earlier. "Scarecrow, how many times do we have to go over this? You're not going to be able to be there all the time. He may be in the hospital, but at least he's alive."

Naru leaned down until her lips were just centimeters away from Kakashi's. "You're an excellent jounin." Softly she pressed her lips to his, but quickly pulled away as he tried to kiss back. "You do everything you possibly can to protect your teammates." She time she pressed her lips firmly to his and sunk into his arms as he kissed her back. Right as his tongue was trying to coax its way into her mouth, she pulled away again. "Stop stressing over things you can't change. You'll worry yourself to death which doesn't sit well with me because I intend to grow as old as I can with you." This time it was Kakashi that closed the gap between their lips.

The couple pulled away as the world around them erupted into the nightly sounds of the village. Frogs croaked happily from their Lilly pads as crickets sang into the still night. A few children could be heard happily playing a game of 'ninja' in the street as their mothers called them home. Even the leaves in the trees and wind chimes that hung from the porch rustled and chimed softly as the wind blew them around lazily. The pair sat close to each other, sharing body heat and comfort as they listened to summer's last symphony.

Naru rested her head against Kakashi's shoulder as he slowly massaged the kinks out of her lower back. "What did you do while I was gone?"

Naru smiled and sighed contently as her lover's hands moved along her lower back. "The Hokage asked me to fill in at the Academy for him; this week was their big back-to-training week. I had to do this question and answer session with the students because he had a couple of diplomatic meetings to attend all week. So I sat in a classroom with about one hundred pre-genin students and did anything they asked me to do."

Kakashi's hands continued working wonders on her lower back as he smiled against her neck. He couldn't keep his mouth away from the soft skin at the junction of her shoulder and neck. Not that Naru minded, but she found it awfully hard to concentrate with him distracting her so pleasantly. "Sounds like fun."

Naru shrugged which earned her a playful nip as her shoulder bumped Kakashi's chin. "It wasn't too bad. Some of the kids had really good questions. One asked me about being a demo expert and another asked what it was like to summon toads. I even had a few ask about you."

Kakashi smiled against her neck. "Did you tell them about my amazing talents? Both in and out of the bedroom?"

Naru snorted. "No, I didn't. I'm sure the senseis would rather not deal with a bunch of irate parents."

"Oh well, maybe next time."

Naru shook her head slightly before tilting her head away from Kakashi to look up into his eyes. She reached forward to grasp his chin and pull him into a short kiss. "I did have one little girl ask me the most random question after the session was dismissed. She asked me what my favorite season was. I think I told her spring, but after I got back here and started thinking I realized that I completely lied to her."

Kakashi raised an eyebrow at her as he chuckled at the annoyed look on her face. "So, what is your favorite season then?"

"Summer."

"Summer? Why summer?"

Naru took a deep breath and waved her hand toward the yard. A few fireflies were making themselves known as they flickered every few minutes. "Because it's everything I love about being alive. Summer is long kisses beneath smoldering sunsets and teasing touches during surprise thunderstorms. It's being so hot that only jumping in a lake can cool you down. Summer is watching you train without that pesky shirt on. It's lying awake at night listening to the wind blow through the open window before reaching over to pull you into a hot make out session."

Kakashi grinned at the light blush that stamped itself across Naru's nose. "You're forgetting a few things sweetheart. What about the days when missions are slow and all we do is lie in bed? Summer is eating those snow cone things you like so much. It's sleeping underneath the stars because you were too stubborn to call it quits before your body gave out. It's watching you train in little-to-no clothing while trying to not molest you on sight." Kakashi turned and looked out over the yard, his eyes glazed over in remembrance. "Summer was realizing for the first time that I felt something deeper than friendship for you."

Naru's laughter moved the still air around her and blended in with the sounds around them. "Summer is our time then? Obviously our love revolves around this season."

Kakashi shrugged and pulled out a glaring orange book from his pocket. "Jiraiya said it best in Icha Icha Paradise. Our love is like a long summer's day, forever stamped in our memories and getting hotter every year."

The blonde kunoichi rolled her eyes at the man's teasing grin. "Of course only Jiraiya could turn something sweet into something sexual. Let me see that book." Naru took the book out of Kakashi's hands and leaned back against his chest as she lazily scanned the pages. "I like this one, but I'm going to read the entire passage for you to get the full affect."

Naru placed her finger on a line in the book and cleared her throat. " _There they lay, basking in the afterglow of their long awaited night of passion, when Eiji removed himself from Sora's arms. The happily sated blonde groped for her lover as he walked across the room, unashamed of his nakedness. Strong, tan arms reached up and quickly jerked back the lone curtain in the room, allowing light to pour into the dimly lit room from the offending sun. Sora quickly covered her eyes with a pillow and moaned at the unwanted intrusion. Eiji couldn't stop the desire from racing down his spine and pooling at his_ ," Kakashi grinned as Naru coughed and looked away from the book before picking back up a few words later, " _at the sound of his lover's moan, it reminded him all too well of the moans that reverberated around the room the night before. With two short strides, Eiji was back on the bed and pinning Sora's hands beside her body._

 _'Do you know what you do to me?'_

 _Sora quickly shook her head as Eiji growled against her throat._

 _'You make me half crazy with lust and desire. I can't control my thoughts or desires whenever I'm around you. I want to hate you for it, but at the same time I know I can't because I'm too attached to you. I'm just a limp puppet and you're my stunning puppeteer, and baby, I intend for you to play with me all night long.'"_

Naru cut her eyes over and raised an eyebrow at Kakashi's smiling face as she snapped the book shut. "Now tell me that isn't the corniest thing you've ever heard."

Kakashi snatched the book from her hands and held it close to his chest. "You can't truly appreciate it until you've read it the entire way through."

Naru didn't look convinced. "Sure you can't."

The couple fell back into silence as night descended upon them. Small rays of light fell across the porch from the open door as more fireflies danced around the yard. Kakashi broke the silence by speaking against the shell of Naru's ear, sending shivers down her spine. "I like whenever you read my book out loud, you should do it more often. You have no idea how much I enjoy it."

The woman rolled her eyes and smiled sweetly. "Really? Would you like me to read more?"

Kakashi nodded his head like an obedient child before handing over his precious orange book. He watched closely as she opened the book to the worn dog-eared page that his favorite scene was printed on. Naru smiled at him again and tossed the book over her shoulder.

"Hey! That's an original copy."

Instead of lunging after it, Kakashi glared at the woman in his lap. "Oh, you wanna play dirty? I can play dirty too." Before Naru could move, Kakashi's fingers were dancing up her sides and attacking the ticklish spot below her ribs. Naru's entire body shuddered as she tried her hardest to get away from Kakashi only to find him pinning her to the wooden floor of the porch with his larger body. A few seconds later, Kakashi let up on his merciless attack to watch her chest heave as she tried to catch her breath.

Naru caught her breath and pulled herself into a sitting position to glare at the man lying in front of her. Kakashi reached forward and wrapped his arms around Naru once more. "We could continue this inside." The underlying implication not even hidden as Kakashi emphasized his point by ghosting his hand over her breast.

Naru chuckled and managed to remove herself from his grasp. "No! Let's stay out here a little while longer. This is the final night of summer and shouldn't be wasted by staying inside." Kakashi threw her a disappointed look, which she returned with a smirk. "I bet I can make this interesting for you Kakashi."

"How?"

Naru grinned evilly before standing up and pulling Kakashi to his feet. She walked around him once, looking him up and down before standing slightly behind him. Then she unexpectedly slapped his behind and hopped off of the porch. "Tag you're it!"

Even though Kakashi was exhausted and wanted nothing more than to fall asleep with Naru in his arms, the teasing grin on her face as she raced away from him was enough to wake up his playful side. If she wanted to play tag, then they would play tag, Kakashi style. First he would need to get his book though.

Naru slowly began slowing down as she realized Kakashi wasn't chasing her. At first she was angry with his unwillingness to go along with her and then she felt bad because she remembered he just returned from an A-ranked mission. Naru openly pouted as she watched him lazily walk towards her, one hand holding his infamous orange book and the other idly resting against his side. The blonde kunoichi squared her stance and placed her hands on her hips as she waited for the sloth.

"Scarecrow! I thought I threw that away! We're playing a game here not reading your smut!"

Kakashi nodded and flipped a page with one finger. "Funny, I don't recall you complaining the other night about this smut. I think I heard something along the lines of _faster_ and _harder_."

Naru blushed to the roots of her hair. "Stop saying perverted stuff like that!"

Kakashi took another step forward and grinned. "Make me."

That's when Naru realized how close he was to her. She took a quick step back as Kakashi lunged forward and missed enclosing her in his arms by inches. Naru took off racing across the yard with Kakashi right on her heels. They raced up the porch steps like children before Naru lead the way into the house, stirring up the few fireflies that were randomly flickering around the porch. Naru stopped long enough to attempt to close the door on Kakashi, but ended up having to abandon that plan. He was coming in too close and fast. Seeing no escape, she took off down the hall.

Kakashi chased Naru into their bedroom down the hall and entered the room just in time to prevent Naru from escaping through the open window. He quickly wrapped his arms around her waist and wrestled her to the bed, pinning her arms above her head. Naru arched up at him and tried to buck him off before finally stilling.

"Okay, you've got me."

Something in the way she said that made Kakashi very wary of her. Naru wasn't the type of person to give up easily, heck Naru didn't even know what the words 'give up' meant.

"You've got something up your sleeve."

Naru smiled gently. "Me? No, not sweet little ole me!"

Kakashi raised an eyebrow at her and slowly began pulling the bottom of the cotton shirt she was wearing up her body. His eyes and hands loving the tan skin there. "I know you all too well Naru. I don't believe a word you say."

Naru grinned as she hooked her legs around Kakashi's hips and twisted her legs to switch their positions. With the grin still on her face, she leaned down and nipped Kakashi's jaw. "Okay, maybe I do have something up my sleeve."

Kakashi smirked and pulled Naru down into a sweet kiss.

Nimble fingers and hurried hands unbuttoned buttons and unzipped zippers as summer's fleeting melody floated into the room from the open window. The late warmth of the evening paling in comparison to the fervent coupling taking place as summer waned beneath a dark Konoha sky.

Summer truly was their time, but unlike summer, their love lasted all year long.


	35. Part 2: Chapter 5

**Part 2: Chapter 5**

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

The morning of their separation Sakumo woke Kakashi up with a few gentle shakes of his shoulder and playful pokes to his ribs whenever his son tried to roll away from the offending motions. The elder Hatake found the actions cute, but wouldn't dare mention that to his son least he find himself on the receiving end of one of Kakashi's patented 'glares of death'. The older man wouldn't admit it to his son, but he also found the glares adorable. They reminded him so much of another death glare given out by a feminine pair of green eyes.

"Come on Kakashi, you've got to wake up and get ready for the day's travel."

"Go 'way."

Sakumo snorted at his lazy son. Perhaps it was just age, but Sakumo could clearly remember a time when Kakashi didn't need this kind of prompting to get up. There was once a time when Kakashi was the one waking Sakumo up for an early morning run or training session. Smiling, Sakumo reached for the blanket underneath Kakashi and harshly tugged it out from underneath him. The sudden movement jolted Kakashi awake and Sakumo soon found himself on the receiving end of one of Kakashi's glares.

"Did you have to do that?"

Sakumo nodded, "Everyone else is already awake and getting ready. Can't have you being late, now can we?"

"Fine, fine, I'm up."

Sakumo smiled as he watched Kakashi scramble around the empty room to find all of his stuff. It was funny how Kakashi maintained the same routine he had at home. He always made sure his supplies where in order before making a trip to the bathroom and this morning was no different. The only difference with this morning and all the others was that Sakumo wouldn't see his son for at least half-a-year. The man couldn't remember a time when he didn't see Kakashi at least once a week, if not every day. It made Sakumo wonder just how much trouble he was going to be in with Nozomi once he saw her again on the other side.

"Don't forget your conductors; those might come in handy later."

"I won't dad."

As Kakashi continued carefully checking over his supplies, Sakumo fought an inner battle. On one hand, he was proud of his son. Not very many shinobi his age or rank were assigned highly classified missions as the one Kakashi was going on. On the other hand, Sakumo feared for Kakashi. Feared so much that it kept him up at night and constantly nagged him during the day. Becoming an assassin was stamping Kakashi's future as a professional killer and something told Sakumo that his son was going to be very good at what he did. It wasn't the killing part that bothered Sakumo; the act itself was an everyday thing for shinobi, but being an assassin opened up a whole new area of killing for Kakashi. Sakumo was a tracker and very rarely had standing orders to assassinate his targets. Kakashi, on the other hand, would have orders to kill political figures, women, children, and anybody else that simply knew too much. Kakashi's future line of work was tainted with darkness and Sakumo couldn't help but wonder what would happen if the darkness swallowed his little boy up.

"Dad? Hey dad! Old man! You're not listening to a word I say! Sakumo!" Hearing his name brought Sakumo out of his thoughts as he turned to look at the smirking nine-year-old standing in front of him. Kakashi's head was tilted upwards with that smirk plastered to his face and a devious look in his eyes. "Listening now?"

Sakumo rolled his eyes and tried hard not to think about how he could see that same smirk on another face. That same devious look too. Sakumo shook his head, for some reason he couldn't get his late wife out of his head this morning and something told him that it had nothing to do with Kakashi leaving. It suddenly dawned on Sakumo exactly what the date was; it was the day after Nozomi died. Funny how things work out. "Sorry 'kashi, I didn't hear you. What did you say?"

The smirk was still there as Kakashi took on a teasing tone, "Age finally catching up to you? How old are you now, fifty?"

Sakumo's left eye twitched dangerously as he lunged forward and scooped Kakashi into his arms to pin him on the bed. Kakashi kicked playfully back and laughed uncontrollably as Sakumo found the ticklish spot along Kakashi's side. "I'll have you know that I am twenty-nine-years old and have three more months before I even hit thirty."

Kakashi rolled his eyes and crossed his arms across his chest. "So? That's still old."

"You're going to give me a complex if you don't stop that," Sakumo grinned evilly, "little boy."

"Now who's giving who a complex?"

Sakumo chuckled before letting go of Kakashi and sitting beside him on the bed. For what seemed like forever, Sakumo watched his son catch his breath and calm himself down. Only the elder Hatake knew how to get his overly uptight son to act like the child he was supposed to be, well only him, Minato, and a certain blonde haired girl. Even after the little display of age, his son's maturity level amazed him sometimes and there were things he said that made Sakumo truly wonder if his son wasn't the reincarnation of an older man. Sometimes Sakumo would listen to Kakashi speak and hear him say phrases and words that he knew his child hadn't gotten from him. There were even times when the tone of Kakashi's voice would take on a coldness that only war hardened veterans developed, the same tone that sent shivers up and down the spines of those around him. He couldn't exactly place what was different, but he knew something was off with Kakashi.

Sakumo shook his head before looking back down at the boy, maybe he was overreacting. Kakashi was growing up on the battlefield. That alone was bound to have some affect on him. The father wouldn't worry about it now; he had other pressing matters to attend to, like saying goodbye to his son.

Sakumo sighed and pulled Kakashi up to sit on the bed. "I think it's time we get serious, because soon it'll be time to leave."

"Okay."

"I don't know if you realized what yesterday was, because I know it snuck up on me, but yesterday was the anniversary of your mother's passing."

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I think forgetting the anniversary of your own mother's death is just about as low as dancing over her grave. I couldn't help but feel horrible because I simply forgot. I couldn't even use the excuse of being in a war because I remembered last year, I remembered.

I looked down at the ugly, flora printed carpet and mumbled out a soft 'sorry'. Dad immediately shook his head. "No need to be sorry, because I kind of forgot too. She's been gone for eight years now and I…." Dad broke off and stared out the window. My mom's death was still an open wound for him. I knew it and anybody else that was around him knew it. I reached for his shoulder, but he shook it off and continued talking. "She's been gone for so long that I have to fight to remember certain things about her and sometimes I fear that I would forget her completely if I didn't have you."

Dad reached over and grabbed the mask that was pooled around my neck. I never wore the thing to bed, but always put it on first thing in the morning. He pulled it up to rest across my nose. "Whenever I pull this up all I see are my features. You have my eyes, hair, and ears." He pulled the mask back down around my neck. "But when it's down, I see so much of your mother. You have her chin, nose, lips, and even those adorable dimples."

I glared at him, but he only laughed. "And don't get me started about the glares and smirks. All things she gave you." He stopped laughing and reached into his shirt to pull on the chain that carried his dog tags. "The reason I'm mentioning all this is simple, when you're with Minato in some hostile land I want you to remember something. Never forget that we fight for not only our Hokage, but also for our precious people. I fight for you and your mother's memory, what are you going to fight for?"

I knew exactly what I was fighting for. I was fighting for a better future, one that didn't involve my student razing Konoha to the ground. One that didn't involve watching Naru's knuckles bleed after others refused to acknowledge her hard work. One where my dad would stand beside me strong and proud, not buried deep into the back of my memory. I was fighting for a future that didn't involve total destruction, but I couldn't tell him those things because they wouldn't have made any sense to him.

It didn't matter anyway; Dad didn't wait for my answer. All too soon he was removing something from the chain around his neck. He reached for my dog tags and unhooked them before sliding a strangely shaped object onto the chain. The hard rock-like object was nearly pure white, but had the strangest swirls of gold wrapped around it. Plus the entire thing was formed into the shape of fang. I raised an eyebrow at the object before looking up to meet Dad's eye.

"What is it?"

"You don't remember this, but the day after your mother's funeral I requested a week long mission to Suna because I needed to get out of the village. Of course, the Sandaime denied my request. I understand why now, but at the time I was very angry and distraught. I left you with Miki and spent a few days in the Forest of Death. I ended up completely shattering the end of my tanto in a fit of rage." He touched the object and smiled sadly. "At first the blacksmith said he wouldn't be able to fix it, but he miraculously managed to cut the sword down and sharpen the end. I had to re-teach my body to handle the shorter blade, but at least it wasn't completely destroyed."

"So this is the piece that broke off?"

Dad nodded, "Yes, but that's not why it's shaped that way. Nozomi made me promise to not burry her in her wedding ring. I don't understand why, but she said I would someday. So I took our wedding rings and the piece of my tanto and had them melted down. Then had the jeweler forge the entire thing into an amulet in the shape of a fang. Our clan has such a connection to our canines that I figured it was a nice nod to them and a way to keep the bands together."

"And now you're giving it to me?"

Dad nodded his head once again before tucking the fang amulet into my shirt. "I want you to have this, so whenever your training gets tough or you get tired, I want you to remember that I'm rooting for you here and your mom is rooting for you on the other side." Dad pulled me into a hug and held me tightly against his chest. "We're both so very proud of you. Please Ka-chan promise me you'll do everything you can to come back to me safe and sound."

The traitorous lump of emotions in my throat tightened as I hugged back and made promises that I hoped to the heavens above I could keep.

* * *

The next couple of hours passed by in a blur of whirlwind emotions and unrecognizable scenes as everyone scrambled to get where they were going. Ronin took control of Dad's squad and they headed out towards Kusa with Jiro leading Sensei's squad following close behind.

Dad and I were the last ones standing by the entrance of the little village as Naru and Sensei said their goodbyes. Dad's hand gave my hair one last affectionate ruffle before he took off with Jiraiya and Naru. It was definitely a bittersweet sight.

"Chin up 'kashi, you'll see them again."

I turned to glare at the red headed woman. "You're ruining the moment Kushina."

She rolled her eyes and walked over to stand beside me. She nudged me with her elbow. "This kind of reminds me of all those sappy romance stories. Ya know where the boy watches his girl walk off into the sunset." I looked up at her and instantly didn't like the twinkle in her eyes. She leaned down and whispered into my ear. "So should we tell Minato now or later?"

I looked up at her with confusion. "What do you mean now or later? And what are we telling him?"

Kushina rolled her eyes before pulling me over to the side. "Well, I ran back to the room last night for a quick shower after you and Naru left. I was dirty, sweaty, and in a rather foul mood, so imagine my surprise and delight when I walked upon the cutest scene I had ever had the pleasure of seeing." She grinned at me and crossed her arms, "I saw what happened between you and Naru, especially you kissing her."

I could feel my eyes widen as I frantically tried to fight down that annoying blush. "That wasn't what you think it was! It was just a friendly peck on the forehead."

Kushina smirked evilly. "Oh really? Naru seemed to like it a little too much for it to just be a peck on the forehead. I bet if you would have stopped moving she would have returned the favor." I was determined to not react to what she said. Nothing she said was going to bait me enough to answer her. I was a shinobi and had the strength to ignore her. I would survive this. She got right by my ear again and giggled. "Perhaps even on the lips."

Naru kissing me on the lips? As if. A kiss on the cheek or forehead was one thing, but on the lips? I don't see that happening anytime soon. I was so caught up in denying Kushina's words that I never noticed Sensei stalking up behind us.

"What are you two talking about?"

"Nothing Sensei!"

I wasn't scared of him, but he had a tendency to go into 'overprotective daddy mode' whenever someone mentioned Naru was growing into a very pretty girl, especially if that someone was a boy. I didn't know what the man would do once Naru started dating, but I foresaw me and him spending many a nights scaring boys away from our Naru. I remembered how well she grew up and how nice she looked once she stopped wearing that hideous orange jumpsuit. She was going to be a looker, God help Minato once she started dating.

Kushina grinned my way as she walked over and looped her arm with Sensei's before ignoring his disbelieving look. "Oh nothing dear, just chatting before you two leave. Have fun, be safe, don't die, and don't forget to change your underwear."

I raised an eyebrow at Kushina as Sensei snickered and leaned down to give her a long kiss. Seriously, they kissed for almost two whole minutes before finally drawing away and giving each other another hug.

Sensei smiled at her softly as he took a deep breath. "Let's get going Kakashi. We've got a long road ahead of us."

I nodded and followed after Sensei, but not before turning around to give Kushina a final wave, which she returned with a blown kiss and a wink. I shook my head at the red haired woman, between Naru and Kushina, Sensei's home life was never going to be boring.

Sensei looked back that Kushina one last time before nodding my way and pointing forward. "Race ya to the check point!"

"You're on Sensei!"

I didn't know what we were racing to or even where, but I could only hope we weren't inadvertently racing towards our deaths. I didn't remember this mission from my memories of the other timeline and felt like I was running blind. I didn't know what to expect and that was a strangely thrilling thought. I wonder what this year will bring.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Minato and Kakashi ran for two straight days, stopping only for short breaks. They didn't know very much about their mission, but they did know the window of opportunity to get inside Iwa was very small. They had to not only meet up with their third teammate, but also go over the mission objective before sneaking into Iwa. Bad thing about not knowing anything was that they had to constantly be on alert. The mission scroll from the Hokage gave little to no directions as where to find their third teammate, just the community name and a secret phrase that she would answer for them. They would ask 'd _o you know when the bird flies'_ and she would answer _'the bird flies before the cat can catch it'._ The pair hoped their third teammate wouldn't be too terribly hard to find.

The two stopped in a small fishing community right outside of Iwa, the place their third teammate was supposed to meet them, and waited along the banks with some of the local residents. A huge festival going on so Kakashi and Minato's drab, unremarkable henges drew not even the slightest attention their way; in fact the other residents ignored their presences. Both were dressed in muted browns and grays, even their hair color took on the same drab brown color. Needless to say, they were undistinguishable and easily forgotten in the large crowds walking throughout the village.

Minato and Kakashi were walking through the village looking for any sign of their third teammate when something bright and loud caught Minato's complete attention. There in the middle of the street was a rather beautiful woman dancing enticingly for a large crowd of people. Minato stopped Kakashi in mid-step and pointed at the woman clad in clothing that left little to the imagination. There was something about her that caught Minato's attention more than it should have.

The woman looked to be younger than Minato, but there was something mysterious about her. Her long, black hair fell unbound down her back in loose curls, moving perfectly with her as she turned for her audience. The long sheer white skirt she wore was thin and nearly see-through, but fitted her curved hips perfectly. The top of the skirt was embellished with gold designs and fell right below her bellybutton, where a small gold ring shimmered in the sunlight. The male eyes of the crowd hungrily took in the valley of naked, tan skin between the top of her skirt and bottom of her blouse, if the little strap of cloth could be called that. Her chest was completely covered by a small tan half-vest that tied up the front, barely keeping her breasts from falling out before the crowd.

Kakashi looked to where his Sensei was pointing and gave the older man an accusing look, as if to remind the elder shinobi he had a girlfriend back home. Minato shot Kakashi a silent look before dragging the young boy towards the street show.

By the time they got over there, the woman was working on her third trip around the open circle. Clad in her nearly see-through skirt, the woman swung her hips slowly in time with the beat of the drum behind her. The crowd watched, too mesmerized by her to pay attention to anything else but the woman dancing. As her hips enticed the men in the crowd, she unhurriedly lifted her hands to tousle her hair as the beat of the drum increased in time and rhythm. Slowly, she brought her hands down to caress the back of her neck and undo the gold chain that resided there, it fell down her body and hit the ground by her bare feet.

She stepped over the discarded chain and reached into the side of her skirt to pull out two thin paper fans. As the drum increased to a heart racing beat, the dancing woman snapped open her fans and continued the swinging of her hips.

Minato's blood raced as did Kakashi's, but it wasn't because of the woman slowly untying the top two strings of her vest. No, it was because of the warm breath blowing across Minato's back and the cold voice that whispered in his ear.

"I love crowd mentalities. All of them are so stupid, vulnerable, and weak right now that it isn't even funny. I could easily do away with any of their public officials and they wouldn't know what happened to them until after gypsy here finishes. Hell, I could start randomly killing people in the crowd and they wouldn't notice until it was too late."

Minato pushed down the shiver that threatened to work its way up his back and simply laid a heavy hand on Kakashi's shoulder. Something told him that he wasn't going to get along well with Kakashi's instructor.

Kakashi looked up at the figure behind Minato and smirked. "Weak and vulnerable are the same thing."

"Whatever kid, I don't have time to care about my vocabulary. Let's go before someone gets an idea."

Minato shook his head and looked back over at the woman that was now dancing with one of the young men from the village. "Do you know when the bird flies?"

Kakashi watched as the woman's frown twisted into a smirk. "Yes, the bird flies whenever he damn well pleases." Minato turned to glare at the woman as she gave out a barking laugh. "Geez, lighten up. The bird flies before the cat can catch it."

Minato nodded and nudged Kakashi to follow the woman. She was leading them out of the little community and into the countryside. Kakashi turned around once more to watch the finale of the street show, only to see the woman toss and large scarf over her head and disappear completely. They left the community just as the loud shouts of shock and glee erupted around the street.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

About thirty minutes later, I found myself face-to-face with the woman that correctly answered our question. She could have easily been the gypsy woman's twin, except her hair was a shocking shade of artificial blue. Well, that and the fact that she was fully clothed in the standard ANBU uniform, minus the arm guards and grey armor.

We walked a little further until we reached a tent hidden in the tall grass of a large field. The blue haired woman motioned for us to enter the tent before walking in herself and putting up a privacy jutsu.

She grinned widely as she introduced herself. "I am Tsukiko of ANBU. No, that isn't my real name, just my codename, and no, this isn't my natural hair color. You can both drop the henges so we can get acquainted."

Sensei and I both dropped the henges at our teammate's request.

"Namikaze Minato."

"Hatake Kakashi."

She looked me over before shaking her head. "You really are a Sakumo clone. I thought they were lying, but it's almost like he cloned himself and then shrunk his clone."

"I resent that."

Tsukiko laughed before sitting down in front of us. "It's nice to finally meet both of you. I've read your files the entire way over here and couldn't wait to see how accurate they were. Well, Minato, Kakashi, let's get started. I have two jobs here, one is to make sure our mission is carried out and the other is to train Baby Fang over here to become an assassin."

I was really starting to dislike my new teacher.

Sensei sighed before holding out his hand. "Do you have the mission scroll?"

She nodded and pulled a scroll from the inside of her black vest. "Of course, here it is."

I moved closer to Sensei and read over his shoulder. Our mission was to infiltrate the family of one of Iwa's top advisors, Abe Fudo, and take him down. He was a new advisor to the war council, but his fresh ideas and insider information of Konoha wasn't sitting well with the Hokage. He needed to be stopped soon. I kept looking at the name on the sheet and reading about the guy's family as I tried to remember where I had seen that name before. Then it hit me like a ton of bricks, Abe Fudo was the same consult I tricked on the mission I took with Dad. I looked at the picture on the next page and automatically recognized the same bright red hair and blue eyes.

"I've met him before."

Sensei and Tsukiko looked over at me with identical questioning looks on their faces. "Really? Where at Kakashi?"

I looked over at Sensei, "Back on that mission with Dad a few years back. He had the scrolls about Konoha's supply lines and stuff."

Tsukiko grinned, "Good, then you know about his soft spot for children? He has a son and recently adopted a little girl. Both are your age and they're his pride and joy. Those children are going to be how we get you into his inner circle."

Sensei dropped the scroll and glared harshly at the ANBU. "So Kakashi's going in there by himself?"

"Sometimes he will be and sometimes he won't. He'll be fine either way, but we're getting ahead of ourselves here. Let's start from the beginning. We're going into Iwa as a small farming family hoping to find income in the main village. My parents were close relatives of the Daimyo of Tsuchi _,_ but they disapproved of our marriage and disowned me. It was such a horrible memory that I refuse to speak of it, so now we're stuck searching for income. My name is 'Nemoto Kazumi' and since I was at once a lady of wealth, I would work very well in any wealthy setting. You are a very unsuccessful farmer that is better suited for gardening than anything else. Your name is 'Nemoto Minori'. Baby Fang here is going to be called 'Nemoto Hikaru'."

Sensei raised an eyebrow at the information she supplied us with. "Did you have to get that detailed with it?"

She nodded her head, causing her blue bangs to move into her eyes. She flicked them back with her thumb. "We have to have all of our information down. A sob story gets us sympathy, especially one they can't prove or disprove. If I'm disowned then no one would speak of me. If the officials asked the Daimyo then they would deny my existence. Plus, there are so many unsuccessful farmers that it would take them years to find out if you were real or not. Then we have Baby Fang, his existence wouldn't be on record because he was born in some backwoods town. We have to make our story not only believable, but also vague."

I sighed, "Okay, but what do we do once we get inside of Iwa. If we're so poor how are we going to afford an apartment?"

She smiled my way, "That's the beauty of Iwa kid; we're going to live in a cave."

I shot Sensei a 'she better be joking look' before turning back towards her. "Seriously?"

"Yep. This way I have a place to train you without drawing suspicion upon ourselves. We'll live in a cave until one of us gets a job close enough to Fudo's property, then you're going to get a chance to shine."

Sensei frowned. "What is he going to do?"

"His job is ultimately going to be to kill Abe Fudo, but first he has to get in good with the family. I'm going to train him right Minato. Don't worry, with my teaching he won't fail this mission."

Sensei's frown deepened as Tsukiko called it a night and bid us to do the same. "We're leaving bright and early in the morning. We need to get into Iwa before noon so we can get there just in time for the lunch rush. The guards tend to get more lax in their standards around that time."

I nodded and lay down beside Sensei. Suddenly I didn't know if this mission was going to be as fun as I originally thought it was.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

The trio woke up the next morning before the sun came up. Tsukiko then spent the next half-hour meticulously going over how their henges should look.

Tsukiko settled for glossy black hair and piercing green eyes, she claimed that even though she was no long a woman of wealth, a lot of her habits would still be intact. No matter how poor her husband was she would continue to try and look her best. Though, her dirty and torn clothes made up for the look of poverty she was going for.

Minato henged his sunny, yellow hair into hair the color of mud, but was allowed to keep his eyes the same. Tsukiko claimed he needed some quality that she could claim she found irresistible.

At first Tsukiko didn't exactly know what to order Kakashi into. They really needed to stay in the same black to brown hair color range in order for his genetics to remain unchallenged by Iwa's idiotic guards, who really didn't understand genetics at all. Finally, the ANBU decided Kakashi's hair was going to mirror hers and asked the boy to henge his hair into a less shiny shade of black. Kakashi's eyes remained the same shade of gray, though, Tsukiko liked them the way they were and didn't want them to change. Kakashi's clothes mirrored the dirty, torn look that Minato and Tsukiko's did.

"Okay, one final thing and then we can get going. Lift up your shirts and pull down the left hip side of your pants."

Minato crossed his arms as he glared at the younger woman. "Why?"

"Cause Iwa has henge detectors at each entrance gate now and in order to keep your henges from breaking I'm going to put a high level seal on each of us. That way only a large amount of chakra will dispel the henge and even then the henge will probably still stay on. It's a drain on the chakra system, but it's easier and safer than trying to keep the henge up during that part of our entrance."

"Okay fine, just hurry up."

Once everyone was dressed and henged correctly, the trio took off towards the north and slowly headed into Iwa. They were a civilian family now and couldn't blow their cover, no matter how irritating it was to have to walk the long distance.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

We automatically knew when we were close to Iwa's borders, because the ninja guards were everywhere. Well that and the fact that everything got less green and more brown. Iwa was surrounded by mountains and each mountain seemed to have its own shinobi patrol squad. I bet the number of shinobi patrolling the borders was triple what it was the last time I was in Iwa. Well, I guess war does that to people, makes them paranoid.

"Stop right there you three!"

Sensei and Tsukiko stopped in front of me, making me stop too. I could see the tensed muscles in Tsukiko's back as she turned to face the bearded shinobi that yelled at us. Sensei automatically took on the role of the protective husband and father as he pushed both of his behind him to speak to the shinobi.

"Yes, shinobi-san?"

"State your business here."

"We're hoping to find work inside the village. Our crops failed this year and it was either starve or move to the village. Starving isn't an option that I like picking."

The bearded man walked over and around us. He looked thoughtful before he grabbed my shoulder and dragged me away from their side. Sensei took a step forward, but was held back by two more shinobi that appeared from the side of the road. Tsukiko was also grabbed by a kunoichi.

"Well, look what we have here! The boy's old enough to enter the Academy and he doesn't seem to have parents. I think we've found ourselves an orphan."

Sensei weakly struggled against the men holding him. We had to stay in character, so I managed a whimper and reached for their hands. The bearded man holding me just tugged harshly against my arm. I wanted so badly to smash my fist into his nose, but I restrained myself and let my body follow his.

"What the hell do you think you are doing shinobi?"

The bearded man immediately let go of my arm as he turned to look at the little man standing menacingly in the middle of the road. It was none other than the kage of Iwa himself, Onoki. It's surreal to think I was standing mere feet away from the enemy himself and couldn't do a damn thing about it.

"No one ever gave you clearance for stuff like this. You should be ashamed and you will be. Take them through the scanners and then send them over to the immigrants division. Your mission for the next few days is to find them work, food, clothes, and a home."

The shinobi bowed low to the ground and apologized profusely before shuffling us into the village gates. I could see the anger in Tsukiko's eyes and figured it was the same anger I felt. Seeing Onoki was a once in a lifetime thing, but the timing for us wasn't right. We wouldn't have survived if we tried something against the man. It was better for us to just stick to our mission and complete the one assigned.

After the shinobi took us through the nightmare that was the checkpoint, we were ushered to the immigration office. The office was literally a hole in the wall of a huge mountain that surrounded Iwa's inner village. They weren't able to offer us much help there, regardless of what the Tsuchikage ordered. The bearded shinobi, whose name I found out was Fumio, looked absolutely worried as he paced around outside of the immigration office. He looked to be wracking his brain for any kind of idea as to what to do with us.

Suddenly, his eyes brightened and he grabbed Sensei's hand. "I know where you can find work! Abe Koji is always looking for hired hands and maids. You may recognize the surname, he's Abe Fudo's younger brother."

Mentally I was rejoicing. This was great on so many levels; if Abe Koji accepted us then we had an opening to get to Fudo. I quickly turned to look at Sensei and Tsukiko; they both looked apprehensive, but hopeful. I just hoped Koji would agree.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Koji did agree, but Kakashi soon found himself wishing the man wouldn't have. He looked a lot like his older brother, except smaller around the waist. He had the same bright red hair and blue eyes, but Koji's were far colder than the warmth Kakashi remembered in Fudo's eyes. There was something about Koji that sent shivers down Kakashi's spine and made the hairs on the back of his neck stand up. He couldn't quite put his finger on it, but something screamed 'danger' about the man.

The good thing about working for Koji was that the Abe family had a close bond between them. In fact, their houses were connected by a hallway. It gave the three Konoha ninja the perfect opportunity to get Fudo when the time came. Another good thing was the Konoha Nin's housing. The Nemoto family wasn't allowed to stay in the main house, because the entire servant housing floor was full, so they were given a small cottage in the very back of the grassy field that ran towards the mountains. Not only was the cottage nearly hidden by rolling hills and brush, it also was near several mountainside caves. Kakashi could now learn the tricks of his new trade without having to worry about drawing suspicions to himself.

'Kazumi' was immediately set to work as a maid in the main house. Koji evaluated her and determined that, with her background, she would be better fitted where the more important visitors were. The Abe family wasn't strangers to entertaining and required the best for their guests. 'Minori' was placed manning the gardens. Luckily for him he actually listened whenever Naru tried to talk to him about the different plant species found around the villages. 'Hikaru' was sort of in limbo. He wasn't old enough to have a set job, but Koji did like to put him to work running small errands around the estate. His real job was to get acquainted with the Abe children and get close to Fudo, but as their first day slowly formed into the first month in Iwa, they saw neither hide nor hair of the other Abe brother.

Finally, one night after Tsukiko came back from the main house she sat Kakashi down and tapped her fingers against the kitchen table. The cottage was a quaint little thing and fully furnished, but it wasn't home. Tsukiko found herself hating it more every day. She quickly put up a privacy jutsu before beginning her speech.

"It's time we start your training since Minato is gone and won't interrupt us. You know he'll never understand your line of work. Neither will your father, but you can't worry about that right now, you need to focus on everything I'm going to tell you. Becoming an assassin isn't something you can do half-assed. It takes time, patience, discipline, and above all, silence."

Kakashi watched with a strange excited light in his eyes as Tsukiko began moving around the room. "I'm going to teach you to step without making a sound, to walk in a room without moving the air, to entice the mind with just a flick of the wrists. Kid, I'm going to show you how to walk into a room, kill your target and walk out like nothing ever happened. I'm going to teach you to love the darkness and hate the blinding light. I'm going to teach you pain. I'm going to teach you suffering and I'll teach you pleasure. I'll teach you everything you need to know to succeed in this line of work and survive in this line of work." She grinned Kakashi's way. "So, are you ready?"

Kakashi nodded once as the door opened to reveal a very hot and sweaty Nemoto Minori. He waved at them both before disappearing into the bathroom. Tsukiko grabbed Kakashi's hand and dragged him out the door, towards the caves behind the house. Once inside, she practically threw him to the ground before lighting a small candle she had confiscated from the cottage.

"Lesson number one. As an assassin, silence is your lifeline. You're supposed to be a deadly killer, so walk like one. I'm going to sit here and I want you to sneak up on me."

The silver haired boy slowly stood up from his position and as lightly as he could, walked over to the woman sitting on the ground. She sighed and yawned loudly. "I knew you were there the exact moment you got up. You're too loud and being too loud in this profession gets you killed. How would daddy feel if you were brought back in a body bag, if we could even get to your body?"

The nine-year-old felt his blood run cold in his veins. The thoughts of his father finding his dead body were too much for him. He shoved down those traitorous emotions and glared at the woman before him. "There show me what to do."

"Of course. You sit here."

Kakashi huffed and crossed his arms as he strained to hear even the tiniest sound, only to hear nothing. Sighing, he uncrossed his arms and strained his ears. That's when he felt the cool metal of the kunai against his neck. In a voice of complete awe Kakashi waited until she removed the kunai before turning. "I didn't even hear you. You have got to show me how to do that."

Tsukiko smirked. "No problem kid, but it will take some time. If you'll listen closely to everything I say then you'll get it just fine." Tsukiko squatted down and held her hands out in front of her. She reached down and gripped Kakashi's sandal. "First things first, make sure your sandals are made of softer material, yeah they wear out sooner, but it's better than your clunky sandals giving you away while you're milliseconds away from assassinated the kage of another village. Always make sure to test your sandals out before you buy them too, because each sandal feels and sounds differently." She pulled Kakashi to a standing position and began taking off her sandals before motioning for him to do the same thing. She walked towards the back of the cave, without making a single sound.

"Now, walk towards the back of the cave and tell me what you hear."

Kakashi did and could hear nothing but the echoing thud of his feet lightly hitting the floor. "I hear my feet."

"Yeah, but you should feel proud, that was a whole lot quieter than any other beginner. Did someone teach you to walk on the balls of your feet?"

Kakashi nodded and smiled proudly, "My dad did. He kind of specializes in tracking so I used to have to try my hardest if I wanted to sneak up on him."

"Don't let my compliment go to your head, you're not great, but you're better than bad. I can still hear your feet though. Come back and we'll go over the next thing."

Kakashi did as he was told and stood before the henged woman. They had to stay in henge because of the possibility that someone could stumble upon them. It was weird, but doable.

"Next thing we're going to talk about is wrappings. From now on I want you to tightly wrap the ends of your pants as tightly as you can. The looser your pants around your legs, the more noise they make when they rustle together. We'll worry about that later though; we can't do much about it right now. We can talk about your breathing. You do really good for a kid with your breathing, just try to keep it regulated and even. Please don't even try to hold your breath during an assassination because that is just begging for trouble. Breath evenly and slowly."

Tsukiko tapped her finger against her chin as she tried her hardest to remember more pointers to give Kakashi. "Ahh! Remember to always place the heel of your foot down first and then rotate your hips forward slightly so your toes can gently hit the floor without much sound. I think that's everything, so let's give it a try."

Kakashi quickly tried to recall all of Tsukiko's pointers and thought he was doing well as he walked across the cave floor once for her, but the displeased look on her face told him differently. "This henged thing isn't working for me." She looked out towards the opening of the cave and saw the sun setting. "Tomorrow we'll try this again, but without the henge."

Kakashi nodded and the two left back towards the cottage.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

Unfortunately for me, Tsukiko wasn't pleased with my progress on stealth. I was okay, but I wasn't excellent or so she said. She was getting this rather devious look in her eyes that only grew and burned brighter as day one developed into week one. We had already been in Iwa for a month and hadn't accomplished a single thing. I was beginning to get discouraged. I'm pretty sure Sensei was too.

While Tsukiko was working in the main building, I was in the cave practicing. I was determined to get the stealth part right, even if I broke something while doing it. It was my determination that made me start experimenting with my stealth skills, because I could vaguely remember having a hard time with lightly walking in the other timeline, but for the life of me I couldn't remember what I did to remedy that problem. It was right on the tip of my tongue and yet I couldn't figure it out. I started off by crouching low to the ground, but that position was too uncomfortable. It wasn't until I started tensing the muscles in my thighs and walking on the outer edges of my sandals did the whole stealth thing start feeling right.

It was like a light bulb clicked on it my head and suddenly the tension in my body felt familiar. I knew this feeling and had used it many times before when I was stalking a target. I couldn't wait to show Tsukiko later.

* * *

I quietly waited inside the cottage for Tsukiko to come back from her day of cleaning and charming the other maids of the Abe estate. She was exhausted, I could see it in the way she walked and ran her hands over her face. I waited until she turned around before I exited my hiding space and slowly made my way towards her. Focusing on my breathing, the tensed feeling in my legs, and the ever so slight rolling of my feet, I walked forward. She didn't notice me until I had a kunai placed in the middle of her back.

Her breath hitched and she slowly turned to grin at me. "Good job Baby Fang, you finally surprised me. I do want to say that you did get a little noisy about halfway across the room. If you ever make another noise like that then freeze completely. Don't shift and just wait until your target plays the noise off, like I did." She reached over and ruffled my hair. "Put your henge back up and then get ready for lesson two."

I did as she asked. Tsukiko was a hard teacher, demanding and impatient, but we respected each other. Unless she was calling me 'Baby Fang', then I lost all respect for her. "Lesson two goes hand-in-hand with the first lesson. You know how to walk now, but can you walk through a room without being seen or felt? You've got to learn how to glide through a room of people without setting off their warning senses. This is a skill that can't be taught though. It's one you pick up as you grow and learn." She looked out the window of the cottage, back towards the large estates and grinned. "Better sooner than later. The Abe family is having a rather large party this evening. We're going to practice your skills on them. Henge into some nice clothes and be ready in five minutes."

I nodded and disappeared into the small bedroom Sensei and I shared. He was sleeping on the bed; his day was split between tending the gardens and sneaking around Iwa. Every chance he got, Sensei tried to sneak off of the ground and searched for any extra information to give back to Konoha. So far he was successful in his endeavors, discovering several unmarked ships that were supplying Iwa with goods. Somewhere there was a supplier that didn't want Konoha to know about their involvement with Iwa.

"Come on kid!"

I sighed and quickly left from the room.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Kakashi and Tsukiko traveled the length of the yard and entered the estates by the back doors. The party was already in full swing with many couples dancing and chatting around the large grand ballroom. Tsukiko pointed towards the floor and led Kakashi down there before slowly walking into the crowd.

Kakashi watched in amazement as the crowd swallowed her up, but didn't seem to notice her presence. Her chakra and aura around her were perfectly calm, showing no apprehension or fear, and her whole being screamed leisure. The young boy was itching to give it a try. Tsukiko made her way back across the length of the floor and smiled as she stopped beside the boy. She nodded towards the crowd and watched as the younger shinobi calmed his chakra and emotions before walking into the crowd.

Amazingly, no one noticed the young boy walking amongst them. Well, almost no one. As Kakashi was walking around the floor in circles, a brown haired girl ran over to him and bowed. "Hello! I'm Abe Takara."

Kakashi took a small step back and looked at the girl in front of him. She was about a year older than him, with soft brown hair and light blue eyes. He bowed back to her before introducing himself. "Nice to meet you. I'm Nemoto Hikaru."

"Well, would you like to come play with me Hikaru? My brother is staying with my grandparents for the year and I get a little lonely."

Kakashi blinked and looked back at Tsukiko, who was waving him forward, and begrudgingly nodded. He really didn't want to go with the girl, but he would if it meant getting closer to Fudo then he would do it. The girl led him all the way out of the ballroom and into a hidden passage right outside the ballroom's door.

She turned and giggled. "Papa says this passage goes all over the house and was at one time a servants passage, but now we get use it to play hide n' seek."

Kakashi was mentally taking note of the passage and filed it away as a potential getaway later. He halfheartedly answered the older girl. "Oh really? That's cool. Your dad sounds fun."

She nodded and continued to drag Kakashi down the passage. "He is. He's the main advisor to the war council now, so we don't have much time with him, but when he's home he does all sorts of things with us."

Kakashi's eyes widened slightly as he turned to look at the brown haired girl dragging him after her. He couldn't help but ask, "Who exactly is your dad?"

"Abe Fudo."

All Kakashi could do at those words was resist the urge to laugh uncontrollably. He was literally being dragged by the same girl that would get him in his target's good graces. Life was definitely ironic.

"Tag you're it."

Seeing as she was his target's daughter, Kakashi ran after her.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I didn't return to the cottage until well after midnight when Takara was forced by another servant to call it a night. The girl had taken me all over the house, showing me all the secret passageways and hidden rooms. She was a nice girl, but I couldn't help but feel horrible that I was going to eventually kill her father.

When I entered the cottage I was bombarded with questions from both Sensei and Tsukiko-senpai. Sensei looked worried and Tsukiko looked excited.

"Kakashi! What happened?"

"Yeah Baby Fang, tell us what happened?"

I took a deep breath and recounted my adventures from the past few hours. "The girl is Abe Takara, adoptive daughter of Abe Fudo. She's ten-years-old and about four months shy of her eleventh birthday. For some reason she instantly liked me and hopes she can see me again. She took me on a personal tour of the estate, every secret passage and hidden room."

Sensei frowned deeply, causing wrinkles to sprout across his forehead. "This almost seems too good to be true."

Tsukiko shook her head. "No, this is perfect for us. I can now teach Kakashi his next lesson since he has someone to test his skill out on. According to the mission scroll, Abe Takara has always been known to be extremely naïve and easily swayed. She's pretty much destined to be a trophy wife with no other redeeming quality."

Sensei turned to Tsukiko and glared. "That's a little harsh to say about a little girl. She's barely old enough to know what a kiss is let alone old enough for someone to make those judgments."

"Does it matter Minato? She's the target's kid, not someone you should concern yourself with."

Sensei quieted, but still didn't look pleased. I turned to Tsukiko and sighed. "You said she works out perfectly for our next lesson. What is our next lesson?"

She grinned and I very quickly realized I didn't like the look in her eyes. "Your next lesson is enticement."

Enticement? She wasn't talking about seduction was she? Sensei apparently thought she was. Both of his eyebrows disappeared into his hairline as he stood up and towered over her. "You're going to teach a nine-year-old boy enticement? Seduction? He's a child!"

Tsukiko stood up and didn't back down from Sensei's angry form. "It's not like I'm going to teach him how to have sex. All I'm doing is teaching him little tricks to charm not only this girl, but future people. An assassin is only as good as their talents and I'm sorry, but sex and sensuality are important keys to getting close to a target."

I understood her point and she was right. Sometimes there were times when an assassin needed to watch and interact with their target before finishing them off. I looked over at Sensei before moving to poke his arm. He stopped his glaring at the woman to look down at me. There was sadness in his eyes that I didn't understand. What did he honestly think she was going to teach me?

"Sensei, it'll be alright. I'm sure what she has to teach me isn't horrible."

He shook his head and sighed. "Why don't you go outside for a minute? I need to talk to Tsukiko for a minute."

I did just as he asked because something in his tone dared me to disobey him.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Minato stood looking at Tsukiko with his arms tensed by his sides. The look of pure anger on his face sent shivers down Tsukiko's spine, but she didn't let it show. She retaliated with her own harsh glare and strong stance.

"What's wrong with our next lesson Minato?"

"Enticement? Seduction? He's a child and shouldn't even know what sex is, let alone how to stimulate arousal."

"Why are you being so damn blind? He has to learn these little tricks so he can get himself out of sticky situations later on. Minato, I'm not teaching him to grope a woman, but I'm going to teach him how to move, speak, and charm his way into any house, office, building in any of the villages. You've seen firsthand how enticement can get a mission completed, or did my little gypsy show not catch your attention?"

Shock developed across Minato's face as the realization dawned on him. "You had a clone do the gypsy routine."

"Yes, I did. Minato, I'm not going to turn your student into a whore or even teach him sexual acts, but I will teach him how to charm this little girl."

Minato sat down and looked at the table. He ran a hand through his hair and sighed. "Sakumo is going to kill me."

"No he won't. He won't ever find out about this training. Kakashi isn't going to tell him, because what son in their right mind would tell their father about this training? Don't worry about Sakumo; focus on your part of the mission. Honestly, what do you have to fear? You forget that enticement has two definitions. Yes, enticement can attract arousal, but it can also attract hope. Everything I'm going to teach him is strictly human interaction and it may come in handy later, he's obviously going to be in ANBU one day and this training could help him with those emotions."

This time Minato pinned Tsukiko to the ground with a heated glare. "I was in ANBU for two years. I remember the missions and I remember the fine line between charm and seduction."

Tsukiko looked at the ground before quickly looking up to meet Minato's eyes. "If I promise Kakashi will stay far away from the seduction missions, will you let me start his training?" Minato closed his eyes and nodded his head once. "Good, I'm beginning today."

Minato let her walk outside to join Kakashi while he sat at the kitchen table with guilt settling heavily in his heart. ANBU was filled with nothing but darkness and horror. It made Minato truly wonder how Sakumo felt about the whole thing. Did he realize Minato was allowing some ANBU chick to turn the silver haired little boy into a weapon that used everything from the weapons in his pouch to his body to get a target? How long would it be before someone told Naru she had to learn the fine art of enticement before she could continue further in the ninja world?

Suddenly Minato found himself wanting to retch.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

The next two months passed by in a flurry of secret meetings, hushed training sessions, and daily meetings with Takara. Sensei didn't like what I was learning to do. I could see it in his eyes whenever I walked into a room or tried to talk to him. Something akin to guilt was eating him up and god forbid Tsukiko try to give me a pointer in front of him, because that look not only increased, but he literally looked like he was going to be sick. I didn't like the distance between us, this was supposed to be our time to come together, not fall apart.

Finally I decided I was going to confront him on the issue. Tomorrow would mark day one of Tsukiko's experiment to get close to Fudo. Takara had practically glued herself to my side since the first time we met and using the information I was picking up from her I was confident about my ability to carry out my mission. I would start charming Takara tomorrow so today was the day I needed to talk with Sensei.

I found him sitting underneath a large cherry blossom tree basking in the shade. He looked over at me and waved me over. "You okay Hikaru?"

I nodded before sighing. "Are you mad at me?"

He shook his head. "No, not at you, but at life in general. I guess I just want you to stay a child a little bit longer."

I quickly scanned the area around us before turning back to him. "You do realize she taught me stuff like how to present a flower to a girl and how to hold her hand right?"

Sensei broke out into a smile and chuckled. "Somewhere in the back of my mind I knew that, but the word 'enticement' just brings up all sorts of other images that I don't want you doing any time soon."

I grinned at him and rolled my eyes as he ruffled my hair. "You worry too much."

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Tsukiko sent Kakashi out of the house the next morning in a nice set of clothes and neatly combed hair. She claimed he had to look his best so Takara would see him instead of the dirty clothes. Minato wished Kakashi good luck before taking off to his position. He had finally caught sight of Fudo a few days ago and was able to confirm the man was actually on the grounds.

Kakashi instantly jogged over to the hiding place Takara used whenever she was waiting on him. The maids didn't like it whenever they played together so the other girl had to sneak out of the house if she wanted to see him.

"Hikaru! Over here!" Kakashi mentally prepared himself before running over to see where she was at. Today the older girl was dressed in a pair of old shorts and shirt, much different from the elaborate dresses she wore on other days. Kakashi grinned at her as she tugged on his hand. "We're going to explore the southern side of the grounds today! There is a small forest there; it's the only one within three miles of here. There's no telling what we'll find over there."

Kakashi's fake enthusiasm was just enough to be believable to the girl as they took off from their hiding place to the southern side of the grounds where there was a small patch of trees growing near the bottom of the mountain. Takara let go of Kakashi's hand as she ran around the tree and tried to wrap her arms around the base of it. Kakashi watched as she hugged the tree before calling him over to help her, she couldn't fit her arms all the way around the tree, but with his help they would be able to do it together.

She was right; with Kakashi's extra arm span they were able to hug the tree tightly all the way around. Takara laughed before tightly grasping Kakashi's hand again and pulling him deeper into the patch of trees. The girl was almost exactly like Tsukiko described her, but Kakashi found her infectious laugh endearing. Plus she had the same kind heart as Naru and never seemed to meet an enemy. Whenever they would stumble upon a small animal Takara would quietly crouch forward and watch the little guy with rapid attention. It made Kakashi think of Naru and for that he was glad.

As the day continued, the two traveled closer towards the mountain and found a small waterfall that trickled down the mountainside. It was completely hidden from the rest of the forest and the two had to duck under several overgrown bushes to get to it. As they looked over the baby waterfall, Kakashi became hyperaware of the fact that Takara was cupping his hand.

Tsukiko's words echoed in his head as he looked down at their hands. _**The first step in any relationship is holding hands. If you get the opportunity, gently grasp her hand and intertwine your fingers with hers. Nothing says 'I like you' better than sweetly holding her hand. Now if you were older then I would say caress her wrist with your thumb, but ignore that for now.**_

As Takara was watching the water fall down the mountainside, Kakashi gently moved his hand down to intertwine their fingers together. Out of the corner of his eye he could see Takara's body jump and her cheeks rush with blood as their hands intimately intertwined together. He gave her hand a soft squeeze, which she returned, and smiled to himself. A part of him wondered if he should feel guilty about leading the poor girl on, but he squashed back that thought. He had a job to do.

* * *

Minato and Tsukiko sat up waiting for Kakashi to get back and both watched him closely as he walked into the room. "So Baby Fang, how'd it go?"

Kakashi shrugged his shoulders. "Good, I guess." Tsukiko gave him a look that screamed 'you better give me the answer I want before I make your life miserable'. Kakashi grinned, "We held hands."

Minato looked relieved before slyly grinning. "How did she react?"

"She blushed a lot so I guess she liked it."

Tsukiko was beside herself with joy. "We're going in the right direction with this one. Now, let's see what tomorrow holds!"

* * *

The next morning, Takara was waiting outside his door with a Popsicle. Kakashi took the frozen snack before raising an eyebrow at the girl. "Isn't it a little too early eat these?"

She laughed and shook her head 'no', causing her hair to fly around her shoulders wildly. "Popsicles are good anytime of the day." She looked down at the ground. "Plus this was the only thing I could sneak out of the kitchen and I really wanted to bring you something this morning."

"Oh, okay."

Tsukiko's voice was back inside of his head, drilling him on proper etiquette. _**If she gives you a gift, no matter how small, you have to find one to give her. Don't you dare let her think she doesn't mean anything to you or she'll get discouraged and you won't get where we need you to go.**_

Kakashi knew he had to think fast so to distract the slowly frowning girl, Kakashi grabbed her hand and pulled her towards a patch of flowers in the middle of the field. These grew naturally in the tall grass of their backyard so they weren't any of the ones Minato had to take care of during the day.

Takara watched with bright eyes as Kakashi handed her his Popsicle and knelt down to the patch of flowers. After a few minutes of careful thinking, he reached down and plucked a white daisy from the growing patch. Kakashi turned and looked into Takara's eyes before smiling and placing the flower sweetly behind her ear.

Takara's eyes widened and her blush returned with full force as she handed Kakashi back his Popsicle and touched the petals of the flower in her hair. Softly, with her eyes shining, she thanked him and gently intertwined their fingers before pulling him after her towards their hiding place.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

Those first few weeks were kind of awkward for me. I was skillfully playing this girl, but somewhere along the way I actually started to like her. Not in the cute, romantic way I was pretending to, but in a sort of friendly way. She was cute and adorable, but she was also part of the mission. I made sure to keep that fact straight in my head; she was part of the mission and nothing else.

Tsukiko-senpai had a breakthrough the other day; she actually got to meet Abe Fudo after four months of being in Iwa, she finally got to see our target. Their meeting didn't last but a few minutes, but it was long enough for Tsukiko to put a chakra sensor on the man. Now she would be able to follow him regardless of where he went. Sensei also had a breakthrough, he met Fudo's wife. The woman loved what he was doing with the outside garden and moved him inside of the house. Everything was falling in place, except I still had yet to meet the man.

Takara and I were getting along fine, but I wondered if she would eventually introduce me to Fudo. She talked enough about her adoptive father that I was sure I would have met him by now.

"'kara?"

"Yes 'karu?"

Petnames, number five of Tsukiko's lessons. She made damn sure she covered everything. I loathed my job right now. Takara was nice and I was just lying to her. I would be eternally grateful when we finished this mission.

"You talk about your dad a lot. How come I've never met him?"

She blinked before biting the tip of her thumb, a habit I notice she had whenever she was thinking deeply. "Well, he's been really busy lately, but he's home right now. Come on, let's go meet him."

I know my eyes widened as she took my hand and dragged me towards the main house. As much as I wanted to meet the man, I hadn't expected it to be this very minute. I quickly calmed my breathing and chakra as we ran into the house and up the stairs all the way to the third floor where a large door was slightly opened at the end of the hallway.

Takara let go of my hand and pushed the door open. "Papa! I'd like you to meet Nemoto Hikaru!"

Well, she and Naru shared another common trait; they were loud whenever they were excited. Fudo hadn't changed since the last time I saw him. He still was rather large around the waist and had that same warmth in his eyes, for just a moment I wondered if he really had to be killed.

"Hello Nemoto Hikaru. I've met your mom already, but hadn't had the chance to meet you." Fudo's gaze shifted to the flower in Takara's hair before shifting back to me. "So you're the one that's been entertaining my daughter. I'm glad she's found such a great friend here on the grounds."

I bowed low to the man and smiled at the floor. "Takara is a really good friend of mine. I'm glad I found her."

"I'm sure you are. Now, I'm very busy can you to do me a favor and go play outside. I promise to come find you two later."

* * *

He did come find us later as we sat underneath the same cherry blossom tree Sensei and I sat under days ago. For the next few hours he chased Takara around the yard and laughed along with her. I slowly detached myself from their sides and made my way back to the house where Sensei was washing dishes. He looked over at me and smiled sadly. I think he could see the question in my eyes and one my face. Did Abe Fudo have to die?

He stopped his chore and walked over to pull me into a hug. "Tsukiko's not here right now, she's checking out something at the dock so you're free to speak."

My throat was tight as I looked out towards the main house. It really was a beautiful house; the tan color was set off nicely by a warm red roof. "The more time I spend with Takara and Fudo, the more I question this mission. I know he's an enemy of Konoha, but why does he have to be so nice Sensei? Why can't he be the same evil persona we associate all Iwa people with?"

Sensei sighed and let me go. "Because it's easier to train children to kill someone if they think they're bad. The Academy senseis knowingly lie to their students and pray they never find out the truth, because learning the truth compromises the mission. We both know all of Iwa's people aren't ignorant barbarians, but believing that makes it easier to complete our missions. Fudo is a nice man, but this nice man is planning the deaths of hundreds if not thousands of Konoha citizens."

I understood that part, but spending time with the family was dangerous because I was slowly beginning to like them. "Will it always be like this?"

Sensei nodded and placed his hands on my shoulders. "I hope it always is. The day you stop feeling bad for doing your job is the day you lose every bit of humanity we've work so hard to instill in you. Emotions separate us from animals and the ability to cry, feel pain, and remorse keep us from turning into emotionless machines. Yeah, it hurts to know you're manipulating a young girl in order to get close enough to kill her father, but this is for your village and for your precious people. It'll get easier, but it will always hurt."

* * *

Sensei's words flew around my head for the next few days as I traipsed around the grounds with Takara by my side. She kept saying she had a special surprise for me. She claimed I would love her surprise and be 'eternally grateful to her'. I couldn't help but wonder if somewhere in her young mind she imagined herself in love with me or rather Hikaru. Did she dream of growing up and marrying the black haired boy? Did she dream of Hikaru loving her back with the same intensity? Girls thought about that stuff, right?

A few hours later I found out exactly what her surprise was. After a lot of talking with her father, he was permanently moving me into the main house so I could act as his personal errand boy, just as I had done with Koji in the beginning. I would leave behind my 'parents' and live in the house where I would be easily accessible by Fudo. I was literally being placed just feet away from my target. Life couldn't get any easier for me at this point.

Takara giggled and twirled as she showed me to my room, just a floor above hers, and pointed out certain things in the room. I sat on the large bed and watched her skip around the room. She looked happy, so very happy with getting her heart's desire. She bounced back over to me and blushed slowly as her brown bangs fell into her eyes.

"I really like you 'karu, a lot."

Her face was right before mine and Tsukiko's voice was shouting loudly in my ear to do something, but I couldn't hear what the memory was saying. All I could focus on was the fact that Takara looked like she was going to kiss me and how fucking wrong this all felt. All I could think about was the absolute sacredness of a girl's first kiss and how hers didn't deserve to be with me, a liar and her father's soon-to-be murderer. I wanted to clench my fists and push her away, but I had to stay in character, and it didn't help that her soft, too soft, hands were ever so gently squeezing mine that I didn't have the heart to push her away.

Then, all of a sudden I felt her softer lips against my own. I can feel her fleshy lips pressed firmly against mine as she attempts to mimic every single kissing scene she's ever seen. She's trying too damn hard to impress me. It's sloppy and inexperienced and so clumsy that I want to laugh, but she's putting her all into pressing her lips against mine that I can't ruin her confidence like that.

She pulled away slowly with that blush stamped hotly across her cheeks. Her eyes are bright and wide, she looks like she's waiting for me to do something, but my mind was completely stopped. Finally, I realized what she was waiting for. I braced myself and leaned forward to whisper back a lie that I hoped she couldn't detect.

"I like you too, 'kara'."

I leaned forward and closed the distance between our lips again and gave her an innocent kiss. It's still sloppy and feels oh so wrong, but she's enjoying it to the fullest. I just gave away my first kiss to my target's daughter, but not before taking hers.

It's official. I'm taking the express route straight to Hell.


	36. Part 2: Chapter 6

**Part 2: Chapter 6**

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

"YAHIKO!"

Naru gasped in shock and wanted to do something to help, but there was no way she could get to them in time. All of a sudden, everything went quiet. The remaining people in the crowd stilled their frantic escapes to stare at the platform. Naru couldn't believe her eyes; two cloaked figures were standing behind the Ame shinobi with their own weapons against the shinobi's necks. Naru's smile was bright as she instantly recognized the two as Jiraiya and Sakumo.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief. I might not have been able to get over there, but both Sensei and Jiraiya had no problem saving the day. Both of their hoods were still up so no one knew who they were, but both of their chakras were flaring dangerously. They gave off a very intimidating aura with their weapons held against the other ninja's throats. I know I would have been scared if I hadn't known who they were.

Sensei growled lowly from inside his hood. "These are children. You should be ashamed for tricking them like this."

Hanzo sneered as he looked at the scene before him, seeing there wasn't any way he could win at that point in time. "Let them go. We'll deal with this another day." Then he disappeared just as mysteriously as he appeared. His shinobi dropped their weapons and followed suit.

Konan immediately grabbed her neck in disbelief before checking on Yahiko and Nagato. Once she was sure they were okay, she turned to Sensei and Jiraiya. I could see the disbelief in her eyes as she stared at the broad form of Jiraiya. Slowly, she reached her hand out and touched his shoulder. Jiraiya chuckled lowly before turning to Sensei. "We've got to get out of here before they decide to come back."

Sensei nodded and motioned for me and the other three to follow him. We quickly left the little town and traveled deep into the surrounding wetlands. Our scents would be washed away and hard to follow thanks to the wet ground and rain. Our hoods were still up, but the three seemed to trust us, or at least Sensei and Jiraiya, enough to follow closely behind. Jiraiya turned to the three and yelled over the pouring rain and booming thunder, "Where's the safe house?"

Yahiko wiped a hand over his eyes to block the incoming rain and pointed to the east. "That way about half-a-mile."

We ran for that entire half-mile. After Jiraiya was sure we weren't being followed; we entered their safe house and locked everything up behind us. Sensei grabbed my arm and pointed back out into the dreary rain. "Let's go set some traps just in case."

I nodded and followed him outside.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Jiraiya slowly lowered his hood and stared at his onetime students. "I didn't think I would ever see you three again. When I heard about the rebel forces, I couldn't help but wonder if it was you guys."

Yahiko pulled off his wet outer clothes and placed them in the small sink in the adjoining room. He came back out with a medical kit for Konan's neck. Jiraiya was amazed at how quiet and mature the young man seemed to be. Gone was the loudness and recklessness, instead there was calmness and thoughtfulness. The orange haired shinobi turned to look at Jiraiya with burning eyes before handing the kit to Nagato. "Why does that surprise you Sensei? Didn't I say I wanted to rule the world? I've got to protect Amegakure's citizens and stop all the wars in this world. I promised that and I refuse to go back on my word."

Jiraiya was happy, he was glad that the passion and fierce loyalty still burned alive in his onetime student. "I never doubted it, just didn't think you would get your chance so soon."

Nagato carefully helped Konan out of her own cloak and left the material in a pile on the floor beside his. Goosebumps raced up and down his arms, but he ignored them as he began bandaging the wound on Konan's neck. She smiled at him after he was finished and was rewarded with the slightest pink blush racing across his cheeks. Nagato quickly excused himself and ran into the other room. Yahiko looked back at Jiraiya before following after Nagato.

Jiraiya was left with Konan. He walked over towards her and circled around her. "My, my, look at you. What happened to the little girl I remembered? You're all grown up now and beautiful to boot." Jiraiya reached over and fingered the flower in Konan's blue hair. "This flower doesn't do you justice, my dear, it's waterlogged and old." Seeing a vase of flowers on the table, Jiraiya walked over and picked one up. He removed the stem and replaced the flower in Konan's hair. "Now that's better."

Konan smiled brightly before wrapping Jiraiya into a hug. "Sensei, we've missed you. So much has happened since you left us, some good and a lot bad. If you hadn't have been there today then we all might have died."

Jiraiya released Konan and took a step back. "Don't talk like that. All that matters is that you're fine now. How is everything?"

Konan's smiling eyes darkened with sadness. "Not good Sensei. Planning this rebellion isn't going so well for us. Yahiko is charismatic enough, but Hanzo is so much stronger. He knows to use our loyalty and love for each other against us. How do we battle against that? We can't."

Jiraiya shushed Konan gently, "You just have to outsmart him. Don't worry, when those other two get back, we'll sit down and discuss a few plans."

"So you're going to stay Sensei?"

Jiraiya turned to look at Yahiko and nodded, "For a little while at least."

Nagato walked in slowly with his head bowed. "A little while? Then you're leaving again."

Jiraiya nodded as Nagato continued to hold his head down. Yahiko sighed before nudging his friend with his elbow. "Don't worry Nagato! We've done fine without him and we'll continue to do fine after he leaves."

Konan shot Yahiko a look before softening her eyes and turning to stare out the lone window in the room. "Who are those two?"

Jiraiya turned and watched as Naru and Sakumo placed several well-hidden traps along the perimeter of the cabin. The grass and debris coupled with the heavy rains would make travel difficult and make the traps even more dangerous. "The girl is Namikaze Naru and the man is Hatake Sakumo, Naru's sensei."

Yahiko's eyes widened at the mention of Sakumo's name. "The White Fang of Konoha? What is he doing in Ame? Isn't he supposed to be tearing through Iwa's forces in Kusa?"

Jiraiya studied Yahiko for a minute before sighing, "Sakumo has a job here, just as I do. Classified stuff, but we'll need your help."

Yahiko opened his mouth, but Nagato interrupted him. "We'll gladly help, if you help us in return."

Yahiko continued to glare at the other boy as Jiraiya smirked at the scene, "We'll just have to see about that."

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

After Sensei and I set a few traps, we had to practically swim our way back to the safe house. The house was located in an area slightly lower than the ground around it, creating a basin effect. It was a miracle the entire house wasn't flooded, but considering the fact that they were Jiraiya's students, I bet there are seals preventing the water from entering the house.

We finally entered the house and were met with three pairs of curious eyes and the stubborn eyes of Jiraiya. "Took you long enough."

Sensei rolled his eyes and started shedding his thick cloak. "You try setting up traps in the middle of a downpour while standing in a practical lake."

I pulled my own cloak off and set it beside Sensei's. Jiraiya waved his hand towards the three teens. "These are the leaders of the rebel forces here in Ame. My onetime students."

Sensei bowed slightly, "I'm Hatake Sakumo."

I followed his example and introduced myself. "I'm Namikaze Naru."

The blue haired girl raised an eyebrow before looking at Jiraiya. "Like your other student? Namikaze Minato?"

Jiraiya nodded before clearing his throat, "His daughter actually. Enough of that. Introduce yourselves!"

The girl smiled softly before bowing, "I'm Konan."

"Yahiko."

"Nagato."

Jiraiya clapped his hands together. "Now that we're all familiar with each other, we can get down to business."

Yahiko wasn't so anxious to get started though. He looked over at Nagato and Konan before turning his eyes back to scrutinize us. "Why should we just automatically trust you? You may have been our sensei, but things have changed since then. How do we know you're not just waiting for your own chance to kill us?"

Sensei crossed his arms across his chest. "If we would have wanted you dead then we wouldn't have gone through the trouble of saving you and potentially blowing our covers. We're here to help."

Yahiko opened his mouth again, but Konan's hand on his arm stopped him. She smiled again and nodded to the other shinobi. "I believe them, Yahiko."

Yahiko looked like he was going to protest, but Nagato came to stand beside him and nodded his head in agreement. "I believe them too. They wouldn't have gone through the trouble of saving us. I think we can trust them."

Yahiko took a deep breath before rolling his eyes and abruptly turning to walk into the kitchen. "Fine. I'm going to fix something to eat then. I hope grilled fish and stew is fine with everybody. It's the only thing we've got already made."

Nagato smiled softly as he turned towards us. "He always gets like that whenever he knows he's wrong. He doesn't like being wrong."

Konan giggled. "Not at all." She looked over at our wet clothes and pointed to a closed door leading into another room. "If you want, you can take your wet clothes into the bathroom so they'll drip into the sink instead of on the floor."

I reached down and pulled the soaking clothes into my arms to take them into the bathroom. They were cold and dripping wet, but I guess that was Ame weather for ya. I plopped them down in the sink, which wasn't the best idea because water splashed back at me, and walked back outside to see Jiraiya talking animatedly with Nagato and Konan, telling them some tale from his travels. Sensei was quietly listening and giving his own opinion as Jiraiya's story became more and more exaggerated.

I walked past the group and into the kitchen where Yahiko was warming up the stew. He turned and smirked at me. "So, you are Jiraiya's newest student?"

I shook my head quickly before rolling my eyes at the thought. Jiraiya was too lazy to be called an actual teacher. "No, Sakumo is my sensei. Jiraiya is just going to teach me a few things. And knowing the man as I do, I bet that means he'll give me an exercise and leave me to my own devices."

The orange haired shinobi laughed before slowly stirring the stew. "You know him all too well, Naru. Hey, do me a favor and go tell them it's time to eat."

I agreed and soon found myself sitting at a small table with the rest of the house. It was a tight fit, but there was a warmth around the table that I didn't understand. Something was different in the air and something told me it meant a world of difference to the future.

* * *

For the next few days, all we did was wait out the rain. Jiraiya and Sensei didn't really want to leave until they were sure Hanzo wasn't looking for them. They didn't know what the man would do if he found out we were from Konoha, our village didn't need any more trouble. Iwa was more than enough for us to handle at this point.

The Ame trio were kind of quiet, at least Nagato was. Konan and Yahiko were the ones that did most of the talking. Nagato just kind of chilled in the background. He was cool though. Yahiko kind of reminded me of myself, not that I'm bragging, but he's got that awesome mixture of smarts and strength that make really good leaders. Okay, maybe I am bragging just a little bit, but I don't mean anything by it. I'm just confident in my abilities, another trait Yahiko and I share. We got along fairly well, but Konan took a liking to me early on in our stay with them. Since we were the only girls, we were given a bedroom together. We spent a lot of time together and she even surprised me by showing me how to fold origami. It's not really my cup of tea, because it takes too much time to sit down and meticulously fold all of these pieces of paper, but it might one day come in handy. I just don't have the attention span or patience to do origami.

It wasn't until we were almost an entire week living with them did Jiraiya wake me up early one morning with training instructions for the day. Sensei was going to spend the day shadowing Yahiko and the other two while Jiraiya was staying behind to show me something he promised Dad he would show me. A part of me felt like this was going to be the Rasengan and if it was then I was going to be one very happy girl.

Luckily for me it wasn't raining the day the pervert decided he was going to train me. Of course, I don't think it would have mattered either way. He took me out to the wettest place he could find. Right behind the safe house was a small stream that ran into the larger river of Ame. The ground was still wet enough from rainfall to make sloppy, sloshing sounds with every single step we took. So regardless, I was getting wet even if I was wearing one of those handy rain cloaks that Konan gave us.

Now as excited as I was to learn whatever he was going to show me, I seriously couldn't help but want to kick him in the shin. Once we got over to the stream, he pushed me into a sitting position on the wet ground and paced in front of me. His pacing sent up little clumps of mud and grass into the air and onto me. Oh, this better be worth it or Konoha would just have to do without their Toad Sage because I was going to do my best to kill him.

"Ero-sennin, if you don't stop pacing, I'm going to break your leg."

He rolled his eyes at me and pulled out a bag of water balloons. "Brat, as if you could even touch me. Now, I promised your father that I would teach you the Rasengan. It's an A-rank ninjutsu and took him three years to master, so I don't know why he insisted you learn it now."

Yep, I was one happy little girl at those words. No longer did I care about the mud or water. All I cared about was getting this jutsu training done. It was time to surprise Jiraiya with my amazing talent and quick wit. I reached for his outstretched hand and took the balloons.

He pulled his hand back and smirked. "Not so fast, blondie. In order to master the Rasengan there are several steps that you must complete. First involves this water balloon. After I fill it up, you're going to try and burst the balloon."

I waited patiently as he began filling the water balloon up with a tiny water jutsu. Once it was round and firm, he held it out in front of him and popped it using his chakra. He quickly made another one and handed it to me. "Now get to it."

I rolled my eyes and smirked innocently. "But Jiraiya, how do I do it?"

I watched as Jiraiya shrugged. "Figure it out yourself, but you can only use your chakra and you can't hit the balloon."

I nodded once and watched as he walked away. I loved remembering how to do this part; apparently the gods wanted me to have a good day. I lifted the balloon up and used my chakra to spin the water inside of the balloon around in opposite directions. A few seconds later I was rewarded with a loud 'pop' as my hand was covered in water with most of it falling to the already soaked ground. Jiraiya stopped in his tracks and turned to look at me with wide eyes.

I grinned. "That was easy. What next?"

He shook his head in disbelief and walked back over. He handed me another water filled balloon and thrust it into my hand. "Do it again."

I did and yet again the balloon burst. Jiraiya looked annoyed. Innocently I looked up at him with a wide, watery expression. "Did I do something wrong?"

He shook his head and grumbled lowly before pulling out a round rubber ball. Mentally I was jumping around and celebrating as I took the ball from his hands. He held up his own rubber ball and exploded it in a similar fashion as he did the water balloon. Then he went off into this spew about how this was supposed to bring force and power into the jutsu coupled with the rotation from the first lesson.

He had this look in his eyes like he was positive I wasn't going to get this one within the first few minutes. I wanted so badly to prove him wrong and pop it right in front of his eyes, but that little voice in the back of my head that sounded like Kakashi whenever he was lecturing me told me to pretend to have trouble with this jutsu. I couldn't automatically get it without causing Jiraiya to suspect I was cheating or some type of super genius. And god forbid the man try to examine me because he would easily be able to figure out my big 'Kyuubi secret'. So I begrudgingly decided to slow down and have 'trouble' with the jutsu.

The Rasengan was one of those jutsus that I used so much it was practically engraved into my mind. Just like Kakashi remembered how to summon his ninken, but unless his dad gave him the contract, he couldn't summon them. Similarly, I couldn't use the Rasengan until someone showed me how to do it. It was very annoying, but at least I was finally getting it taught to me.

"Okay, give it a try."

I halfheartedly rotated my chakra inside of the rubber ball and did my best to look discouraged. Jiraiya was eating my act up completely. He had this annoying grin on his face as he went on to give me tips and then, just as I remembered from the other timeline, he left me alone. At least this time it didn't sting. I had a sensei now and a family. I wasn't trying to use Jiraiya as some strange surrogate grandfather. Now he was simply my dad's sensei.

I played around with it for only a few more minutes before making a clone and instructing the clone to pretend to be me for the day. I wanted to explore some of the area while I was alone. My clone agreed and took on this look of complete desolation as she tried to make the ball pop. I took one last look at the house and took off towards the backwoods, hoping I could go around the clearing and get to the other side.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Once Naru made it away from the safe house, she immediately headed into a small town close to the one Yahiko was nearly murdered in by Hanzo. For the first time she really saw how rundown and poor a town could be. The people looked to be starving and those that were starving looked like they were in immense pain. Naru could feel the depression in the air and tried to make it go away by smiling, but even that didn't seem to help. The people were just too beaten and broken down. It made her think of Konoha after Sasuke started attacking.

She continued walking down the road and peered shyly into broken windows and opened doors. Every house had the same depressing feel. There wasn't a single child playing in the streets or young lovers flirting with each other. There weren't many young men in the town either; most of the residents were older women and men. It was a strange occurrence, one that didn't sit well with Naru because all she could focus on was the lack of children. Where had they all gone?

It didn't take Naru long to reach the end of the street where she heard soft crying. Thinking it was an animal, Naru slowly walked into a seemingly abandoned house. Once she was inside the front room, one of the boards propping the front door open fell and caused the door to slam shut. Naru jumped at the sound before laughing at her own stupidity.

Shaking her nerves off, Naru walked into the adjacent room and followed the sounds of the crying. The crying continued to get louder and louder as she walked further into the house only to stop at a large door. Even though the hairs on the back of her neck were standing up, Naru reached for the doorknob and opened it. The scene she walked in on would haunt her dreams for years to come.

A woman, whom Naru assumed was the mother, was gently rocking the bloody body of her child. Tears were cascading down the woman's face as she buried her head into the child's unmoving chest. Naru couldn't tell from her position if it was a boy or a girl, but the gender didn't matter at that point. The woman continued to cry and rock as Naru began to notice two other little bodies laid side-by-side on the bed. One was an infant and the other was a toddler. The woman didn't even notice the blonde haired girl standing there transfixed by the sight of the corpse family and their mortal mother.

Naru couldn't tell how long the children had been dead, but she knew from the smell that they weren't freshly dead. Suddenly, she found herself choking down vomit and tears as the mother started softly singing lullabies to her children. It appeared that the woman wasn't even aware that her children were dead. Blinded by her tears Naru frantically began backing up, tripping over the edge of a table and falling right back into a pair of warm arms.

Naru instinctively started fighting the arms off before she looked up to see Sakumo's face transfixed on the scene before them. She stilled in his arms and leaned into them.

Yahiko appeared by their side and shook his head at the woman. "I don't know whether to praise her for ending her children's lives or condemn her for it." Naru looked up in shock at the orange haired shinobi, who calmly met her glance and pointed to the scene in front of them. "Children from this village were found to be excellent manipulators of chakra, so Hanzo started taking them as young a two-years-old away from their parents for training. She obviously did what she thought was best to protect her children."

Sakumo shook his head and sighed. "It's a damn shame. Mothers should never be forced to choose death for their children, even if death is the better outcome." Sakumo looked over to Yahiko. "What are you going to do with her? She can't stay here like this and someone needs to bury those babies."

Yahiko looked down at the floor. "She'll just end up killing herself if we take them away. I'll take care of it."

Sakumo pulled Naru to her feet and slowly began dragging her out of the room. They both could hear the conversation between Yahiko and the mother as they left the room. "I did what I thought was best! I protected my children! I loved them enough to kill them than see them fighting for Hanzo. You don't understand they were starving and I couldn't feed them! I'm not a bad person or a bad mother! I'm a good mother, right? I loved them!"

"Yes ma'am you did. You did a great job and I'm sure you'll be with your children in the afterlife."

Sakumo covered Naru's ears as a resounding 'crack' resonated through the paper thin walls of the house.

* * *

"You okay Naru?"

Naru didn't react to his question and silently stared at the dirt on the ground. "How did you know I was in there?"

"Yahiko was checking out an abandoned factory a few houses down the road when I felt your chakra, which, by the way, you've got to start concealing at all times." The corners of Naru's mouth twitched slightly as she promised she would start concealing her chakra better. "Anyway, after that we heard this loud slam and I had a bad feeling you were into something. I never would have imagined what we'd find." Sakumo reached over and pulled Naru's chin up so she was looking him straight in the eyes. "Naru, are you sure you're okay?"

"Am I supposed to be okay? After what I saw? A mother killed her children because she believed they were better off dead instead of fighting for Hanzo and starving. Are these the horrors of war, Sensei? Are these the things that will haunt my dreams? Is this supposed to be affecting me as much as it is?"

Sakumo smiled softly at his student and gently rubbed soothing circles into her wrists as she tried to keep everything inside. "Yes Naru, this is war. I hate to say it, but yes, you'll see horrors like this a lot more often as the war drags on. I wish I could shield you from it, but I can't. There are times in this world when we have to make bad decisions over horrible ones. This woman couldn't see a better life for her children and couldn't save them herself, so the only way she was able to gain that control back was by ending their lives. I can't commend what she did because it tears my heart apart, but she made a decision that gave her an outcome. Her children aren't starving or with Hanzo, yet they're not living either. It's war, a lose-lose situation for both sides"

Naru's bottom lip trembled as she kicked a clump of dirt with the toe of her sandal. "I hate war."

"Me too, Naru, me too."

The two were silent as Yahiko finished up and quickly buried the bodies. He returned to sit outside with the two Konoha ninjas. Anger was plainly written across his face as he slammed his fist into the thin wall, punching a hole through it. "This is all Hanzo's fault! One day I will be the ruler of Ame and I will save the people. This will never happen again."

* * *

I spent the entire next month having a clone practice popping the rubber ball with Jiraiya while I snuck out and explored more of the towns. You'd think that I learned my lesson the first time around, but I couldn't stop exploring. I knew these people were in horrible debt and practically starving, so I couldn't help but feel the need to help them. I made improving their lives my secret mission while my clone was practicing with the rubber ball.

Only problem was that Sakumo-sensei made me tell him where I was going each day. He promised not to mention to Jiraiya that I wasn't training in the field if I would keep him informed. I considered it a great trade and didn't hesitate to give him detailed information on my daily activities.

One of the little missions I assigned myself was taking care of a small farmer's crop. He was an older man and wasn't able to get out as well as he used to. During the day I and a couple of clones would go into his rice fields and check to see if the water levels were okay and if the plants were growing well. Whenever the crop matured then I was going to harvest the back part for him while he was taking his afternoon nap. He could get the closer part of the crop fine, but the further away from his house; the harder it got for the old man to walk.

I also used my clones to dig a well for one of the little towns around the safe house. Their original well was contaminated by some of Hanzo's shinobi and they didn't have the manpower to dig another one, so they were using the lengthy process of distilling rain water to get drinking water. I couldn't sleep knowing they weren't getting good drinking water because they didn't have enough people to dig a well, so I dug it for them. Of course, all of these tasks I did under some sort of guise. I couldn't draw attention to myself or our mission would be in jeopardy.

Finally, once the month was over I felt comfortable enough to go back and rock Jiraiya's mind by completing the second step of the Rasengan. Well, that and I didn't really have anything else to occupy my time. The crops were harvested and the houses were patched up, so I was left with either aimlessly wandering or going back to the Rasengan. I really shouldn't have waited a month to do it, but there were other pressing matters that I needed to tend do. It's not like it matters how soon I finish it; he's going to be blown away anyway because it took Dad three years to master it. I was planning on mastering it within the next month.

I dispelled my clone as I returned to the house and called Jiraiya over to watch me. He watched with hidden interest as I gathered my chakra into my hands at a much more controlled and denser level than before. I could tell he noticed the change in my chakra density because his left eyebrow rose slightly. I smirked as the ball popped in between my hands.

Jiraiya clapped. "The second step is complete, at an alarming rate I might add."

I smiled at him and wiped my hands off on my pants. "Now what?"

The Toad Sage took out a deflated balloon and quickly blew it up. Then he held it in his hand as he began explaining. This was the final step, the step that brought together everything to make the Rasengan. I couldn't wait to feel the comfortable pressure of my chakra spinning tightly together against the surface of my palm. Oh how I had missed that feeling!

"Do you understand?" I looked up at him and noticed he had a Rasengan spinning in his left hand while the right held the balloon.

"Yeah, spin the chakra without moving the balloon. Got it."

"It's not that easy Naru. You've skated through this entire process, but even this will take time."

I resisted the urge to roll my eyes at him. Was Jiraiya in the other timeline this annoying too? "I've got it. I'll have it down in no time at all."

As Jiraiya walked away, I took a long look at the balloon in my hand and sat it down on the ground. Last time around I stupidly took on Tsunade and bet her I would master the complete Rasengan in three days. She on the other hand gave me a week and bet the First Hokage's, her grandfather's, priceless necklace against all of my money. I brought my hands up to my neck and felt the empty spot where the necklace used to reside. I had lost it somewhere between there and here. I guess it was just one of those things I had to give up in order to make the future a better place.

I took a deep breath and walked toward the tree line as I gathered my chakra and called upon a clone. I was pretty sure I could complete the Rasengan without my clone's help, because my chakra control was so much better this time around, but for old time's sake I was going to use a clone. Quickly my chakra gathered and spun rapidly and tightly around in my hand as my clone quickly began forming it into the perfect sphere shape I needed to have a completed Rasengan. Once the tightly spinning ball of chakra was in my hand, I let loose a grin and plowed it into the nearest tree. Hearing the oh-so familiar cracking of bark as my chakra hit it was music to my ears. Feeling the pressure of the chakra against my hand was as comforting as a favorite blanket.

I loved this technique.

* * *

Showing Jiraiya the completed technique just days after he showed her the final step was the best thing Naru could have ever done. The older man now looked at her with something akin to wonder and amazement in his eyes. He talked to her differently now; obviously realizing she had some kind of talent.

Sakumo walked around Jiraiya with an 'I told you so' look on his face and grinned every time Jiraiya mentioned Naru's progress. He knew his student was a quick learner when it came to jutsu. The girl picked up jutsu faster than his ninken could find a scent.

Seeing how well she did with the Rasengan, Jiraiya slowly began teaching her simple seals. The ones she would use for exploding tags and for carrying her explosives. He could tell the girl had little to no interest in learning seals, but he figured he could enhance her knowledge by relating it to demolition.

Only problem with teaching Naru seals was that she didn't like repetitive actions, like practicing her seal drawing technique. It annoyed her to no end and she just couldn't concentrate on what she was doing. It was even worse for her because she was forced to sit inside and practice the seals. Inside and Naru didn't mix well.

Sakumo tried his hardest to get her to concentrate on the exercises, but after the first few sheets of paper, Naru just zoned out from what she was doing. This was really the first time he had ever seen her actually sit down and work on something. Usually she was bouncing around the training field and showing off her amazing skill. That talent was nowhere to be seen as she struggled to pay attention to the sheet. Sakumo knew it wasn't because she was unintelligent, but because she was bored as Hell. Jiraiya was the kind of teacher that would show you something once and then leave. Sakumo, on the other hand, usually stuck around and coached.

Since Jiraiya was following the Ame trio, Sakumo had decided to stick around and see what he could do to help Naru concentrate. He sighed before picking up a few of the blank pieces of paper and looking at the front door.

"Okay, get up. We're going to try something different because obviously this isn't working."

Naru's face lit up with hope as she pushed herself away from the table and followed Sakumo outside. The silver haired man looked deep in thought as he took a good look around the yard before summoning his wolves. The entire pack stood at attention before him as they waited for Sakumo's orders. Naru watched the entire process curiously as Sakumo whispered into their ears what he wanted them to do.

"Naru, can you step inside for a minute? And remember, no peeking."

Naru nodded and did as she was asked. For the life of her she couldn't figure out what her sensei was doing. A few minutes later, Sakumo called her back outside. The wolves were all still standing at attention, but now each one had a piece of paper hanging around their necks. Each piece of paper displayed one of the symbol components that Naru was supposed to be learning.

"We're going to play a game. Since learning seals is more memorization than anything else, all you have to do is recognize the symbols and know how they fit where. You pretty much already know what they do and how they do it, but you just don't have an attention span long enough to learn this on paper. So we're going to help you."

"How?"

"The ninken are going to randomly run around the yard and rearrange themselves in a random order. Then you are going to write down every seal symbol you can see in their arrangement. After we've done this a few times it will start getting harder because I'll start telling you which symbols you can write down and which ones you can't."

Naru smiled and ran back into the house to get one of the tablets of paper and an ink brush. He nodded towards Sakumo, who whistled and stepped back from the ninken. Each wolf gave a small howl before taking off across the yard and falling back into place. Naru studied each symbol before quickly writing down some of the ones she saw. Sakumo watched happily as Naru finished and turned to show him her work.

"Good job, let's try for something harder."

* * *

I would work on seals until our mission was over, or so Jiraiya said. Talk about boring. If it weren't for Sensei I would have died of boredom. Luckily he knows me well enough to catch my interest easily. We were almost five months into our mission now and Jiraiya kept mentioning he was going to take me to his friend, the ex-demo expert, but he hadn't actually taken me to him yet. We've been spending most of our time working on the seals so of course I was excited to get away from the seal work. I was also excited on another level because after living with Tsutomu I realized how uneducated I was about demolition and mines. Demolition wasn't simply placing a bunch of explosives around a wall and hoping it fell. There was so much more to it and I was ready to learn it.

The Ame trio were rarely at the safe house. They had other pressing matters to attend to out and about in the countryside. According to Sensei, they were getting followers and planning a huge revolt. Most days it was just me and Jiraiya and considering he rarely stayed around to watch my training, I was alone most days. Just me and whatever complicated seal Jiraiya had me memorizing.

It was the days I spent alone that I missed Kakashi more than I wanted to admit. He had been my constant companion for so long it was only natural for me to miss him. Kyuubi found it funny and never stopped talking about how cute a couple we would be. I've just learned to ignore everything the furball says. Me and Kakashi a couple? Yeah, right, when pigs fly.

Another little thing I had taken to doing was playing pranks on Jiraiya, nothing huge because I didn't have the resources or time to plan them, but he was the one that would wake me up in the morning. So whenever he would walk in and try to rouse me from sleep, I would mess with him. Some mornings I would simply turn over and away from him until he got so frustrated he walked away. While others I would burrow deep into the covers where he would have to untangle them to get to me. Yeah it wasn't anything as good as what me and Kakashi pulled off, but it was something to do.

This morning was no different. I knew how Jiraiya's walk sounded because of those geta sandals he loves to wear. So I waited quietly with my eyes firmly shut. Today I was going to jump up at him while he was leaning over. What I didn't expect was that he already knew I was just playing with him. As I jumped up I was met with a splash of cold water.

The feel of the water instantly took me back to a place I tried not to think about. It brought me straight back to Fort Kei, right back to Tero and his freezing water, squeezing hands and growling voice. Pain shot through my brain like lightning as the memories assaulted my mind, causing my body to spasm sharply and breath to come out in uneven puffs. I was hyperventilating and if I didn't get my breathing under control, then I was going to pass out. Vaguely I could hear Jiraiya saying something before the blackness took over.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Jiraiya stared wide-eyed at the girl before him. He didn't know what caused her to start hyperventilating until he remembered this was the same girl who was captured by Iwa. Immediately he reached down and pulled her into his arms, ignoring the fact her body was clammy and cold he raced into his room and started pulling dry blankets off of the bed. Quickly he wrapped her up and rubbed his hands against her arms to try and warm her up.

The Toad Sage knew anything could set off a torture victim and wondered if Naru was suffering from a slight case of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder. PTSD could show up at any time and be set off by any little thing.

Jiraiya slowly tried waking Naru up by gently stroking her hair and shaking her slightly warmer shoulders. Groggily the girl's eyes opened and she struggled slightly before settling down when she realized who was holding her. In her haze, she smiled and called him 'Jiraiya-sensei' before passing out again.

He stared transfixed at the girl in his arms before laying her on his bed and walking back into her room. With his mind in a fog, he gathered a bag full of her stuff and went back into his room to pick her up. Today she was supposed to start training with the ex-demo expert and they were already late. The man wasn't going to wait any longer.

Jiraiya made a quick decision and decided to take Naru as she was, her color was looking better and her breathing had evened out, so he was sure she was going to be just fine. What didn't make sense to him was the fact that she just called him 'Jiraiya-sensei.' Naru never called him anything other than Jiraiya, pervert or Ero-sennin. Jiraiya pushed it out of his mind and filed it onto his list of things that didn't seem quite right with the girl before exiting the house and heading towards the outskirts of the woods. There he would meet Naru's newest teacher and pass her over.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

When I finally came to, I was lying in a bed I didn't recognize in a dark room I didn't recognize. A woman was sitting beside my bed in a rocking chair and smiled softly at me as I tried to sit up. Gently she pushed me back down and stroked my hair in a comforting fashion. She was an older looking lady, probably about fifty-years-old, with light blonde hair and a maternally plump figure. She had the whole 'mothering' feel about her as she smoothed the covers around me and turned on a lamp beside the bed. In the light I could see the small laugh lines and crow's feet that dotted the corners of her mouth and eyes. Her eyes, though, was what my attention focused on the most; they were solid white.

"Lie back down dear. Jiraiya said you had a bad attack so there is no need for you to stress your body anymore than it already is. You stay right here while I go get my husband."

I watched her leave and tried to get comfortable on the bed as I waited. I couldn't believe I freaked out again! What kind of a kunoichi was I if I couldn't get over this little memory?

It didn't take long before the woman was back with a tall man. He was older than the woman, at least sixty-five and had salt n' pepper hair. His hair kind of reminded me of Aki's fur. He had a broad chest and figure, but he wasn't as big as Jiraiya. His face had the weathered look from being out in the sun too long and several scratches ran down the length of his neck, but overall he gave off a warm aura. His clothes, though, were a little questionable. He was wearing brown overalls over his regular clothes. Perhaps it was a way to keep his clothes clean?

"Well, looks like my newest student is up and ready. I could kick Jiraiya's ass…," his wife interrupted him with a soft command to watch his language, "I mean, behind, for bringing you to me like you were. Tell me girl, what set you off? You had obvious signs of shock."

I looked away and sighed. The woman moved from her husband's side and sat down on the bed beside me. "Leave her alone for now. She needs something in her system before she starts talking about that. We haven't even introduced ourselves yet." She took my hand and gently touched my cheek and closed her eyes. I could feel a strong pulse of chakra form around my face before disappearing. She smiled widely. "My, my, you're such a pretty little girl. I bet you've got your own little following of boys back home. I'm Amori Naomi and this bear of a man is my husband Amori Yuuto."

Yuuto rolled his eyes playfully at his wife's back. "I can introduce myself; I'm not that old yet."

Naomi laughed and turned to glare at the man behind her. "Well, you should have introduced yourself before I did; we both know I have to get the last word in."

I found their loving banter really cute and sweet. "Of course, I should have remembered." He winked at me before sighing and waving. "As my wife said, I'm Yuuto, your teacher. We're just ready to eat lunch if you want to come into the dining room and eat."

Naomi looked like she was going to protest, but sighed instead. "Only if she feels up to it."

I stretched my muscles and nodded. "Yes ma'am, I feel better. Oh! I'm Namikaze Naru."

She nodded and held out a hand for me to take. I took her hand and let her lead me out of the bedroom and down the hall into a large dining room. She stopped and blushed slightly before turning my way. "You see dear, I would show you where to sit, but my eyesight isn't what it used to be. Normally I have everything set up in a way I remember, but we have extra guests this week so everything is a little different. You'll just have to seat yourself."

I smiled at her, even though I knew she couldn't see it, and patted her hand. "That's fine. You didn't have to escort me here anyway, but it was very kind of you."

"Ahh, it's just my upbringing. Now there is a nice young man staying here with us for a few days, so whenever he gets down here please introduce yourself to him and tell him that there is extra paper in his bedroom and beautiful scenery behind the house. He's an artist and according to Yuuto he's very good at what he does. Okay, I'm going to bring out lunch while you sit down."

She then left me with a pinch on the cheek. I liked her, but I think I could do without the cheek pinches. I now understand exactly how Kakashi feels. Just as I sat down at the table the door opened to reveal a tall man with light brown hair and light blue eyes. I could swear I had seen him somewhere before, but I couldn't exactly put my finger on it. He was clutching a bound portfolio in one of his hands and a pencil in the other. He noticed me fairly quickly and grinned my way.

"Yo! I'm Raiden."

"Hi! I'm Naru. Naomi-san wanted me to tell you that there is extra paper in your room and beautiful scenery outback."

Raiden laughed, causing little wrinkles to show around his eyes. "She's too good to me. I've gotten some amazing pictures since coming here and couldn't ask for a better place to stay."

I looked at his portfolio before smiling. "Can I see?"

He nodded. "I don't mind showing off! I've got a lot of my original works in here, so be careful and I know my first few pictures are horrible, but those were done when I was a child."

I opened the portfolio and was surprised to see the very first black and white drawing to be of the Hokage Mountain with the first three Hokages proudly watching over the village. The next one was of a small girl kicking her feet happily in the water. They continued on until finally other known places caught my attention. He had drawn the sand dunes of Suna and even included a few drawings of the round buildings of Sunagakure.

The final pages were a little depressing, but still kind of beautiful. He began drawing scenes from aftermaths of battles. Kunai and shuriken littered the ground in one of his pictures, surrounded by the wilting stalks of a crop of corn. There were even several drawings of families as they tried to gather together and get their lives back together after the armies of shinobi left their lives. He definitely caught the bitter and harsh side of war in his drawings. The last few pages were of some of the scenery around Ame and I could tell the difference from his skill in the first picture and in the last. He was good at what he did.

I looked up at him as I handed back over his portfolio. "They're beautiful, but I can't help but ask, did you live in Konoha?"

He laughed and nodded. "Born and raised. I've got a sister back there too. She was a shinobi, but I don't think she is anymore. The last time I heard from her she was injured and working at the hospital. I miss her, but I can't go back until I've completed my collection."

"Your collection?"

He nodded once more, the brightness in his eyes making him look like a young boy. "I made a promise to myself that I would see the world and I'm almost done. All I have left to see is a couple of the island nations and a few of the northern nations."

"You saw Iwa already?"

He laughed. "I got lucky and got in before the war started. Surprisingly enough, those pictures of Iwa are my best sellers."

"Oh, so you sell them too?"

"Yeah, I have to or I wouldn't be able to get very far. I had one of the aftermath of the Hachi Ravine that sold to a wealthy Fire Country Daimyo for a very large price. It was dangerous to get the drawing, but I did it without dying."

Naomi took that exact moment to walk in with a platter of food. Raiden tried to get up and help her, but she insisted on doing it herself. I think this is going to be an interesting next few weeks.

* * *

After supper Yuuto brought me downstairs into his 'lair.' He jokingly claimed that his wife wouldn't allow him to keep his explosives upstairs because it clashed with the décor. Not that I blamed her. A couple hundred pounds of explosives was not only dangerous, but would have clashed with the décor.

"Jiraiya wants me to teach you demolition. I can do that; it's something near and dear to my heart. If it weren't for my background in demo, then I wouldn't have met my wife."

I smiled at him as he went on to explain how he met Naomi before the Second Shinobi War because he was trying to blow up an enemy's house and ended up blowing up hers. Luckily she wasn't home, but after he realized his mistake he felt obligated to correct it and eventually fell in love with her. Of course, Naomi was a kunoichi back then and beat him hard after he destroyed her house, but he claimed that was a story for another time.

"This leads us to our first and most important lesson. Always triple check to make sure you have got the right target because once something is wrecked, it's not getting un-wrecked without serious work." I laughed with him as he remembered that day so many years ago. "Now, let's get down to the serious part."

He led me further into the large basement, stacked high with a number of devices and barrels of explosives. He walked all the way to the end of the room where two chairs were in front of a table and offered me a seat. He remained standing and paced around the room. "Demolition is a unique art. It's not simply tearing down or blowing up a building. It's knowing the exact science behind how to bring down the structure in front of you. Every structure is unique and has a unique way to come down without destroying other buildings or people."

He walked over to one of the shelves in the room and pulled out several blueprints. He laid them out in front of me on the low table. "Each structure has a support and if you damage or remove the support, the section above will fall down, causing a domino effect. This causes the next level to crumble and eventually fall all the way to the ground. Now watch this."

He walked over into the middle of the room and took off right boot. As he stood on one foot, he held the boot above his head and dropped it to the ground. It landed with a muted 'bang' as dust and dirt flew into the air.

"It's gravity, my dear. A force that works on us all and helps our job tremendously."

He walked back over to the table and began tugging open blueprints at a rapid rate.

"Ideally, if you're demolishing a building you'd want the blueprints, but I know how hard those are to come by. So most of the time you'll just have to wing it as far as the structure goes. The type of demo you'll mostly work with is implosion. That's where the building is collapsed into its base. Any questions?"

I shook my head. There was no need because he was explaining everything very clearly, a little fast, but clearly.

"Good! Now, most demolitions can be done with a few strategically placed blasts, starting from the bottom and working your way up. The base needs to be weakened so the supports are weakened and easier to come down." He reached over behind him and pulled out a pencil from one of the shelves before drawing a circle around the base of one of the buildings on the blueprint. "The bottom needs to be your main concern because a strong base will make or break a building. The base also needs to be divided into two separate blasts. All together and it will cause the entire building to fall and mistakenly injure everybody in the vicinity."

I nodded to show I understood as he went on explaining. "From there you work your way up and place explosives on a floor in the middle and at the top. There is really no need to place explosives on every floor because it's a waste of resources and, really, it is overkill. You would be using too much power and cause more harm than damage. Your job as a demolitionist is to bring down your target without bringing down everything else in a five-mile range."

"Now, let's talk about bridges and later I'll show you how to make dud explosives to scare people with."

I think I'm really going to like this man.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo scratched his head as he stood in the middle of the kitchen and tried to figure out where Naru could have gone. He had just returned from working with the Ame trio when he noticed Naru was nowhere on the premises. It wasn't like her to not tell him where she was going, so obviously she had to leave in a hurry. Even then, it wasn't like her to not leave a note or something so he wouldn't spend the next few hours worrying over her.

Naru not being there caused Sakumo's protective streak to act up because his mind was going through a million different scenarios over what could have happened to her. Jiraiya's absence was also suspicious and just caused his mind to go through another million different scenarios, each ending with Minato killing him for letting something happen to Naru. Sakumo massaged his temples as his growing headache throbbed beneath his fingertips. He hoped Minato would take mercy on him and let him say his goodbyes to Kakashi before he killed him.

"Sakumo! You're back!"

Sakumo let out a sigh of relief as he turned and saw Jiraiya standing in the doorway. Only problem was that Naru wasn't with him.

"Jiraiya, where is Naru?"

"Oh, she started training with the retired demo expert. She'll be gone about a month or so."

"Okay, because I was kind of worried."

"Me too. She freaked out on me this morning and I didn't know what to do. So I just kind of winged it and she looked better by the time I dropped her off. It's about what four o'clock now? She should be fine by now."

For a minute Sakumo tried his hardest to convince himself that he hadn't heard Jiraiya right. Then as the man continued to ramble about the morning's events, Sakumo knew his ears weren't playing a trick on him. Jiraiya was a dead man.

Jiraiya didn't notice the stifling killing intent until the blunt end of Sakumo's tanto was wedged firmly between his shoulder blades and pointing directly at his heart. The Toad Sage hadn't even felt the White Fang's movement until it was too late. It truly showed how skilled the younger man was.

Sakumo's voice growling in his ear reminded Jiraiya too much of the growling anger of the man's wolves. "Now, let me get this straight. Naru had a panic attack this morning and you sent her off anyway? You idiot! Didn't you remember what she went through? What did you do to set her off?"

Jiraiya slowly lifted his hands up in surrender and took a step forward. Sakumo's tanto was still held firmly in his hands. His eyes screamed murder if Jiraiya didn't give him the answer he wanted and fast. "She's been playing with me every morning for the past week and this morning I decided I was going to get even. I splashed her with cold water and she freaked out. She started hyperventilating so I tried calming her down. We were late and she needed to go, so I wrapped her up and took her. Yuuto's wife, Naomi, is taking great care of her. She'll be fine."

Sakumo snarled and backed away from Jiraiya. He immediately headed towards the door.

"Where are you going?"

Sakumo didn't answer and slammed the door behind him.

Jiraiya scoffed after the man. "Don't know why he's so damn touchy. He just needs to get laid." And at that exact moment, pushing everything that just happened out of his mind, Jiraiya got a brilliant idea. "Sakumo could use a girlfriend!"

As Jiraiya was planning out Sakumo's dating life, Sakumo was following behind Kane as they followed Naru's scent to a field where a young man was sitting against a tree trunk drawing. Sakumo stopped Kane and turned towards the man that looked vaguely familiar. "Hey, have you seen a little blonde haired girl?"

The young artist smiled and put down his art supplies. "Answers to the name Naru?" When Sakumo nodded the artist's smile widened. "Yeah, go down this road and turn left. You'll see a huge house with a pond out back. That's the Amori house, she's in there."

"Thanks!"

"No problem."

Sakumo and Kane continued until they found the house. Kane pointedly told Sakumo he could have found it without the artist's help, to which he laughed and told the wolf the man reminded him of someone. The silver haired man walked up to the house and was greeted by an older woman sitting on the front porch wearing a plain blue dress.

"Good afternoon, I'm looking for a girl named Naru. I'm her Sensei and wanted to make sure she was alright."

"Naru is currently downstairs training with my husband, but I can go get her if you want to speak her. Did you get Jiraiya for bringing her to us in her condition?"

Sakumo softly growled underneath his breath. "Not yet, but I'm working on it."

"I'll be right back." The woman replied before disappearing inside.

Minutes later Naru came running out of the house and latched herself to Sakumo. It stuck him for a moment as he realized that Naru was no longer hugging his leg, but was tall enough to latch herself to his waist. She was growing up right before his eyes. It made him wonder how Kakashi was doing and if he was growing just as fast as Naru. "Kick his ass for me!"

Sakumo snorted and breathed a sigh of relief. He was afraid her episode would have set her back in her recovery. The next time they were in Konoha, Naru was going to need to see Inoichi for a check-up. He knelt down to her level and sighed. "Naru, what happened?"

Naru shrugged her shoulders and looked away from Sakumo. "Sorry Sensei, I'm trying to get over it, but these little things keep popping up and they take me by surprise."

Sakumo shook his head and grabbed Naru's chin to turn her head towards him. Her eyes avoided his, but Sakumo spoke anyway. "Naru, there's nothing to be ashamed of. Most people wouldn't have gotten over this as fast as you did. You're doing great, better than we could have ever imagined. So, what happened?"

Naru took a deep breath before talking in a quiet voice. "Tero used to wake me up by splashing me with cold water and when Jiraiya did it, it took me right back to that place. I'm stronger than it, though, and I shouldn't have let it get to me."

"Silly girl, haven't you realized by now no one condemns you for those little shortcomings that are so far and few between? No one can tell you that you aren't strong because you had a flashback. It would be like telling the Hokage he can't mourn for the shinobi lost during the war." Sakumo sighed before looking past her to the front door where her newest teacher was standing. "Well, looks like you're needed back inside the house. I'll see you in a few weeks. Do you want me to leave one of the ninken?"

Naru giggled and shook her head. "You always offer that."

He shrugged and winked at her. "They're my extra set of eyes. If one of them is with you then I know you're safe. I did promise your father I would watch out for you."

"Yeah, but one day you're both going to have to back off."

Sakumo thought about that for a minute before standing up and shrugging. "Maybe, but not anytime soon. Good luck Naru, and be safe."

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

Over the next few days Yuuto and I got into even more detail about building structures. It was a lengthy process, but easy to remember. I was already excited about the lessons, but I got even more excited whenever Yuuto brought out the explosives. He had every size, shape and type I could ever dream of looking at. Judging from the look on his face, I knew I was going to learn each one intimately.

"Let's start off with a standard exploding tag. I'm sure you've worked with these on numerous occasions because it's one of those basic shinobi weapons. I'm sure I don't have to go over this, but I do want to show you something about the seal." He pointed to the center of the tag where the word 'explode' was written in kanji. "If you tweak the seal just a little bit then you can tweak the explosion, it all depends on the angle of the final brush stroke. If you move it up just fifteen degrees then the explosion will be bigger, but if you move it down fifteen degrees it will be smaller than the standard explosion."

"Now, remember I said I would teach you how to make dud explosives?"

I nodded and he grinned as he turned the exploding tag around and drew a single short line between the two kanji symbols. "This will neutralize the explosion and not allow the explosives to release, but it will still release smoke and sound, just not the part that combusts."

"But how does it still release sound? Aren't the explosives going off what causes the sound?"

"You're right, but your chakra is embedded into the seal and is released at the same time the explosives are. If the chakra is the only thing released then it will make a similar sound to the explosives just not as loud. If there's an exploding tag being thrown at your head you're not going to stick around to see if it's alive."

He laughed and I quickly joined in. He was an easy person to get along with and I didn't feel like I needed to be constantly on guard with him. Perhaps I shouldn't get too comfortable just yet. He reached over and pulled out a bag of regular grain. I raised an eyebrow at it before flicking my eyes back over to him.

"What is that supposed to do?"

"This is regular grain and doesn't look very dangerous does it?"

I shook my head. "Not at all."

"Actually, this can be as dangerous as most explosives. With the right amount of air suspension and spark this entire bag of grain can cause a huge explosion, big enough to destroy this house." My eyes widened in shock as he sat the bag back on the floor. "Flour can also do the same thing. It's just one of those things you need to know if you find yourself without other supplies, you can always use household items like that."

He clapped his hands together. "Now, let's move on to chemical explosives. Have any idea what trinitrotoluene is?" I shook my head. "You might recognize it better as TNT, not to be confused with dynamite because those two are completely different things. TNT is a chemical compound and highly dangerous. Anything can set TNT off, the slightest temperature change or even friction. What's great about it, though, is that it can't be dissolved in water. So it's perfect for underwater demo if you ever find yourself needing to do that. Plus it also has to be wired if you're using it for building demolition."

"Now dynamite is different from TNT. It's made from an explosive component of nitroglycerin. Highly combustible and sold in stick form, it's the easiest to use whenever you're in something like a mine because the explosion is unique enough to cause a blast from both sides of the stick. Am I going too fast?"

I shook my head and continued to hang onto his every word. He was telling it in a way that was not only interesting, but very informative. I couldn't wait to put my knowledge to use.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Two weeks before their month was up, Yuuto took Naru to an abandoned village just a few short miles away from his house. He walked forward and turned back to look at Naru.

"Welcome to your playground, Naru. For the next two weeks you will try and take down each of these buildings using the techniques and knowledge I have given you over the past month. We had to speed train you, but you've taken to everything like a fish to water and I'm sure you'll do fine."

Naru grinned as Yuuto gave her a pack filled with everything she would need before walking over to sit away from the blast site so he could watch.

The blonde haired kunoichi started with the smallest building, a shack that looked like it had seen better days. Taking into consideration the height and width of the building and the fact it wasn't supported by anything except the supports in the walls, Naru placed one exploding tag on each of the four walls. Once she was confident they were placed properly on the supports, she backed away and denoted the tags, one at a time. She watched with glee as each blast went off and caused the walls to groan before finally collapsing in on itself. Yuuto clapped from his seat and urged her on to the next one.

The next building turned out to be a four story warehouse, a little more difficult than the last one, but doable all the same. Naru entered the warehouse and this time placed TNT around the main supports on the first floor. She then made her way up to the third floor to strategically place more explosives and finally a few more on the final floor. After the explosives were set, Naru had to wire them together so they would all go off at the same time. She quickly ran back downstairs as soon as the last explosive was wired and ran out of the blast range. Naru hit the detonator button and watched with mild disappointment as the building leaned slightly to the back as it went down, missing completely toppling the base.

"That's fine Naru, it still went down. Next time try evening out the amount of explosives you put on the floors. You're doing a great job."

They continued just like that for the next two weeks. Naru would scout out the building and place the explosives in places that would give her the outcome she desired. By the end of the two weeks, Naru was toppling buildings with the ease of a skilled and experienced veteran.

Yuuto was impressed, but also a little wary. A part of him didn't agree with teaching a child how to bring down buildings with such ease. He was just glad she was on his side.

* * *

Naomi smiled as she heard her husband practically race Naru into the house. She couldn't remember a time when the older man was this excited about training a student. Even whenever he was training their son, he didn't show as much enthusiasm as he did with Naru.

The blonde haired woman sighed and walked back into the house; since she had lost her eyesight it was harder on Yuuto and he rarely smiled anymore. Perhaps this little girl was exactly what he needed to get some of his youth back.

"Naomi? Where are my socks?"

The woman sighed and shook her head. If only Naru could improve his memory. "In the third drawer dear."

* * *

The day Naru left the Amori house was a bittersweet day for her. Though, she hadn't spent a lot of time inside, Naomi had taken a liking to her and was sad to see her leave. Raiden laughed whenever she asked if he wanted to send a letter back to his sister in Konoha.

"No, there's no need to have her worry about me. I'll return one day, but I do have something for you." He reached into his portfolio and pulled out a charcoal drawing of a cluster of daffodils growing straight and proud despite the rain pouring around them. Naru couldn't believe how beautiful the drawing was; it really showcased his talents. "The daffodil symbolizes rebirth and new beginnings and the rain symbolizes cleansing and new life. I thought it was a perfect picture to give hope and encouragement while you head back into battle."

Naru really didn't know what she would do with the picture because it was too beautiful to fold. She thanked the brown haired man anyway and promised to take good care of it.

Yuuto smiled and then handed her a book of reference material and a pack full of exploding tags and other things she would need. "I just wanted to make sure you were well prepared."

Naru grinned as she pulled the pack over her shoulder and gently clutched the drawing in her other hand. "I'm sure I have everything I need now. Thank you!"

With that Naru's goodbyes were said to the inhabitants of the Amori house and she stepped outside to wait for Sakumo or Jiraiya to come get her. She was in for a surprise, though, instead of one of those two, Nagato and Konan came for her.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

Well this was unexpected. "Where's everyone else?"

Nagato sighed deeply. "Yahiko and Sakumo are having trouble in the village. Hanzo's troops are there and trying to detain Yahiko, but Sakumo isn't letting them. He's got his ninken chasing them out of the village right now."

Konan giggled and softly held onto Nagato's arm. "It's kind of funny seeing those men so terrified of the wolves. They're really nothing more than a bunch of big softies."

Yeah, she hadn't seen them in action. Of course, I hadn't either, but Kakashi talked about them with this completely captivated and awed look on his face that I assumed they were amazing in battle. I remembered Kakashi's ninken well enough to know they had to be amazing.

Nagato kicked a clump of dirt before pointing back towards the road. "Let's go. Jiraiya-sensei wanted us to get back as soon as we could."

I wanted to tell him not to worry, but there was an underlying sense of urgency in his voice. Almost like he knew something he didn't want us to know. I sighed and took one last look back at the Amori house before heading out after Konan and Nagato.

Once we got there, Sensei and Yahiko were already sitting around the table, talking in low voices that stopped when I walked into the room. I hated when adults did that. Yahiko looked over and waved before giving Sensei a pointed look and turning back to his soup. I quickly went to put my stuff into my room before coming back out and hearing the newest orders.

"Naru, for the next few months, you're going with me to follow Yahiko, Nagato, and Konan."

"Sure, fine by me. It's not going to be boring or anything is it?"

I could tell by the looks on Yahiko and Sensei's face that I was in for a huge surprise. Turns out the next three months of my life were just about as interesting as watching paint dry.

* * *

Before I knew it, it was November and we were officially nine months into our mission. My birthday had come and gone and the days were getting colder, so cold that it started snowing. Apparently freezing rain and below freezing temperatures make snow. Seeing snow was an interesting sight and slightly fun, but it was annoying because the snow was so easy to leave tracks in. We had to work extra hard on not leaving tracks and using our charka to walk on top of the snow, kind of like water walking.

Okay to be honest I did like the snow, but mostly because Sensei was so excited about it. Rarely did Sensei ever do things that made me question his maturity level. Most of the time he was a cool, calm and collected shinobi, but after watching him try to coax Jiraiya into the snow, I knew he was sent specifically to be my role model. I would be the thirty-year-old playing around in the snow and starting snowball fights with the children of the communities around Ame. Sensei was special. Him and dad both had to have been made from a similar mold because they were too different from other shinobi and too alike to not be related in some way. Perhaps they were at one time brothers in a past life? Anything is possible I presumed.

So I spent my mornings following Yahiko, Konan and Nagato as they tried rallying supporters across the Land of Rain with little success. They had a whole lot more now than they did before, but they didn't have enough supporters to go against Hanzo. The man was just too big and powerful for their group right now even if we helped. My afternoons were divided three different ways. Jiraiya always made sure to take me for a seals lesson or two. Sensei took me and trained with me on the days Jiraiya was busy. The same regular training regimen as before, but he decided to up the difficulty of it because I was older. Also, he started going full on while we were sparring. Keeping up with him wasn't an easy thing. He was faster than me and knew it. Given time I was able to catch him off guard with a few of my traps and little tricks learned from Yuuto, but whenever we were sparring one-on-one I wasn't given the luxury of setting traps.

On the days I wasn't with Sensei or Jiraiya, I was with the Ame trio. Nagato was surprisingly quiet, but insanely good at ninjutsu. Konan's paper techniques were unique and I was dying to spar with her to see if I could counter them. Water didn't seem to have a huge affect on them, but I had a feeling fire would. Yahiko had this tough personality, but was surprisingly very adept in water-based jutsus. It didn't match his personality, but I guess it was one of those things that I chalked up to looking underneath the underneath.

The Ame trio weren't my new 'teachers' in any way, shape or form, but once you live with someone for nearly a year you pick up stuff from them. Because of Nagato I developed a strange taste for fish, something that before I hadn't really cared for that much. Though, if someone put a bowl of ramen and a plate of fish in front of me, I'd go for the ramen every time. Yahiko troubled me. On top of the fact that I kept getting these really strange flashbacks about him with ripples around his eyes, he also had this goal to become 'god of the world.' That didn't set well with me because 'of the world' included Konoha and that was my turf. Konan was slowly changing from the bright girl she was when we first arrived here; she was becoming more and more serious.

All of them were changing. The past year had been hard on them. Too much activity, not enough sleep, too much anger and not enough laughter was making them old before their time. Perhaps this was the fate of all leaders, work until the job runs you down and then step back and hope someone benefited. I promised myself I wouldn't be like that. I was going to become Hokage, but I wasn't going to let the position kill me.

November changed into December and December slowly changed into January and nothing about their cause changed. Nagato lost hope somewhere between November and January and almost threw in the towel, but Yahiko was right behind him urging him on towards their dream. I admired their friendship and it reminded me of the slightly less friendly relationship I had with Sasuke. Well, before he went crazy. Konan tried her hardest to bring joy back into the house, but the winter chill just wouldn't go away. Even Sensei tried, but reality was too busy striking the group in the face for them to notice him.

Finally, I decided to step in and at least try something. Perhaps a well-placed prank would give them back some cheer? I needed to get Jiraiya back anyway for leaving me with strangers during a panic attack, so he was fair game right now. I just needed to figure out what I was going to do to the pervert. I guess I could just go with a classic and prop a bucket of something nasty above the door and lure him in. Heck, I bet I could even use my sexy jutsu to lure him in. He'd definitely follow her. Now all I have to do is figure out something to put in the bucket. Yahiko might have an idea.

I waited until Jiraiya left the room before walking over and smiling widely at Yahiko. "I need a favor."

"What kid?"

"I need some nasty, smelly things."

"Like fish guts and rotten eggs?"

I nodded once and gave him another sly smile. "Yep, got any?"

He rubbed his chin in thought before pointing towards the kitchen. "Whenever Nagato cooks he puts all the used grease in a pan back there underneath the sink. Something his mom used to do to keep the trash from catching on fire. And there's also the fish guts from the other day outside the door and I'm about fifty percent sure the milk went bad a week ago."

I thanked him and raced into the kitchen to get whatever I could find. The grease wasn't hot, but it smelled horrible and was thick so it would be hard to get out of his hair. The fish guts were rancid and would work perfectly for what I had planned. I dumped them into the bucket with the grease. Now personally I didn't think the milk had gone bad. Yeah, it was past the expiration date, but those are really just suggestions anyway. I sighed at the waste before putting it in the bucket with the other slop and carefully carrying the mixture over to the door. By now I had an audience of not only Yahiko, but also Nagato and Konan. I think they all thought I was crazy. Maybe I am, but being crazy was a whole lot more fun than being sane.

Jiraiya spent most of his day checking in with his spies he had around the area, that and 'researching' as he likes to call it. There aren't very many hot springs around Ame, but there is one and that's the one he haunts on a regular basis. He would leave early in the morning and return around three in the afternoon and since he pretty much stuck to the same schedule, I knew he was coming back soon.

I opened the door slightly before walking up the wall and precariously perching the bucket between the doorframe and the top of the door. After admiring my handiwork, I jumped down and waited for Jiraiya to come back. It didn't take long for him to come sauntering up to the door. I grinned and made ready to run for it because Jiraiya wasn't going to be a happy camper in a few minutes.

What I didn't expect was for Sensei to be with him. Hearing Sensei's laughter instantly sent my stomach in knots. The man was downright evil and vicious if his hair was messed with. I was dead if he walked through the door first. I turned and quickly looked back at Yahiko, who was peering out the window, and he nodded once. Damn, Sensei was coming in the door first. I had a decision to make; either let the prank happen and have Sensei kill me, or take the fall. The first one was so tempting.

I could hear Sensei's feet as they got closer to the door and made the split decision. I raced forward and flung the door open just in time to push Sensei out of the way and get splattered with the slop. Never before in my life had I ever wanted to vomit more.

Jiraiya was beside himself in laughter and Sensei looked like he was trying his hardest to not laugh at me, but there was a definite look of gratitude on his face. "Come on sweetheart; let's go get you hosed off."

I dutifully followed after him, not before kicking Jiraiya hard enough in the shin to bruise the bone.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Yahiko waited until he was sure Naru wasn't within hearing range to burst into laughter. His laughter sparked the laughter of his friends. Together all three of them truly laughed for the first time in months. Yahiko couldn't believe that a girl Naru's age could be so selfless and loving. She really cared for their happiness, enough to go out of her way to make them happy. Granted, the prank didn't go exactly as planned, but it wasn't a complete failure. Seeing Jiraiya clutch his shin in pain was a sight Yahiko wouldn't get tired of seeing any time soon.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

Three baths and five showers later, I was clean and the house was happy again. Even if it meant that I was the one on the receiving end of the prank, at least they were smiling and laughing again. Tomorrow was going to be a rough day. Jiraiya's informants were nervous about Hanzo. The man was mobilizing troops and that made Jiraiya and Sensei nervous for the Ame trio. I was going tomorrow, as were both Sensei and Jiraiya, because something didn't set right with what the spies were saying and with what Sensei had scouted out.

Tomorrow Yahiko was supposed to lead a secret meeting in the same town Hanzo attacked them at. I thought it was a stupid idea and just asking for trouble, but apparently most of their followers could easily reach the town. It was right in the middle and had a large concentration of people that couldn't stand Hanzo. Something told me tomorrow wasn't going to be good. Today felt too much like the calm before the storm.

Turns out my feelings were completely wrong. The meeting was a success and Yahiko's cause gained a lot of followers and began laying down plans to storm Hanzo's mansion. Their numbers were strong, but their skill was weak. Not that it mattered, teamwork almost always won over brawn.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

A few weeks later Naru found herself right back in the same town everything started in. The podium was gone and the olive tree looked like someone had burned it down, but the people were the same. They still had the beaten look of oppression, but there was a hint of defiance there. The 'freedom' fever was raging here, even more so now that Yahiko had successfully gotten a plan together.

As Yahiko glided through the crowd people immediately recognized him, some turned their faces and whispered while others actually looked hopeful. Nagato and Konan were right behind him, watching his back and looking as intimidating as a pair of attack dogs. The Konoha group stuck to the crowd, weaving between people and blending in perfectly with the brown and muted grays of the other residents. They had all opted to wear their cloaks to give an element of surprise if they needed it.

Once the group got to the warehouse basement where the meeting was going to take place, the Ame trio went to the front while the Konoha trio spread out into the crowd of people gathered. Yahiko started speaking and suddenly all Hell broke loose.

Hanzo's men infiltrated the meeting. How they knew about the location no one ever figured out, but most suspected there was a rat in the ones gathered. The Ame trio had gone to extreme lengths to make sure Hanzo didn't find out about their meeting, even going as far as to use seals to detect lies and such, but all of their efforts were in vain. Like a cockroach, Hanzo's men were still able to crawl underneath the door and wreck the meeting.

Sakumo and Jiraiya instantly got into action as Naru began getting people out of the building; the fewer casualties the better. Since they were in a basement with only two exists, Naru had to improvise. Quickly, she made a bunch of clones and had them try to break a hole in the ceiling so the people could get to the second floor. It was moments like this when she wished she still had the right to summon frogs because they would have been really handy at that point. So as her clones made a human chain to get some of the civilians out, she took the remaining out the back way.

Sakumo was cutting through the shinobi that were pouring into the basement room. Hanzo wasn't looking to capture anymore; he wanted them dead. The white chakra of his tanto sliced across skin and cut through bone as he tried to protect the civilians caught in the fray. A few recognized his face and tanto in their final moments, but Sakumo didn't worry about that, they wouldn't be able to speak later anyway.

Jiraiya stood with Yahiko as the young man looked over the makeshift battlefield with despair in his eyes. He knew they were after him. The shinobi hadn't made it to them yet, but they were getting close. Yahiko's eyes flicked over to where Nagato and Konan were standing with their own weapons drawn.

"One day, I will bring peace to this world and stop the pain of my people." Outside thunder rolled and lightning flashed at Yahiko's words. "But, I'm not going to do it just standing here."

Yahiko jumped into the fray and fought beside Sakumo, blocking a strike to the older man's back and began a ruthless barrage of combos. He jumped away long enough to pull out a storage scroll and release the water stored inside for one of his water jutsus.

"Suiton: Mizurappa!"

The violent water wave splashed into the crowd of oncoming shinobi and swept many off of their feet. Jiraiya was instantly behind Yahiko already running his fingers through the seals for his Toad Oil Bullet. The thick sludge spewed from Jiraiya's mouth and covered the floor in front of them. The oil created a film over the top of the water, never mixing, but lying on top. Most of the shinobi coming in were instantly caught in the gooey mess and tirelessly struggled to get out. Sakumo looked at the oil before tugging both Jiraiya and Yahiko out of the water. Quickly, he brought his hands together to form the seals for a fire jutsu.

"Katon: Gōkakyu no jutsu!"

The fireball connected with the oil in a fiery blaze that knocked Sakumo backwards slightly. Ignoring the screams of pain and the nauseating smell of burning flesh, Sakumo ducked to block a kick towards his head. He quickly swept the other shinobi's feet out from under him and rammed his tanto through the shinobi's throat. The fire on the oil was burning greatly now and getting closer to the stage where the others were at.

Jiraiya tried to see through the smoke as he looked for a way out. "Over there! That's where Naru went to get the civilians to safety."

Yahiko grabbed Konan and Nagato's arms and raced towards the exit with Sakumo and Jiraiya right behind him. Naru's voice called out to them from the top of the stairs.

"Hurry up! They whole place is going to go down!"

The remaining five shinobi raced up the stairs and threw themselves into the pouring rain as the building behind them erupted into flames and smoke. Yahiko and Konan landed a little further out than everybody else. Naru breathed out a sigh of relief as she started helping Nagato to his feet, only to discover that he had injured himself in his landing. He couldn't stand without immense pain shooting through his entire body. They needed to get him medical attention fast because the situation was getting dire. In his condition he would be useless in a fight.

"Well, well, well, look what we have here. The Toad Sage and the White Fang of Konoha. What an honor, you've gotten older since the last time I saw you, Jiraiya." Everyone turned as the blond haired man laughed before taking a step forward and grabbing Konan and Yahiko by the hair on their heads. "Last time I made a horrible mistake. I let my guard down, that isn't happening this time."

Hanzo flung Yahiko over to one of his guards and held onto Konan. He grinned before burying his nose into her blue hair and hissing into her ear. "I think I might keep you alive. You'll be very entertaining later."

Nagato hissed in pain as he tried to stand and brandished a kunai as Yahiko struggled against the man holding him. Jiraiya looked back and forth, trying to find some way out of this situation. The scene before him was eerily similar to the one a few months before, but this time around they didn't have the element of surprise on their side. He quickly looked over to Sakumo and saw the look in the man's eyes. It was the same look he got whenever he thought up some half schemed plan that usually always worked. Sakumo's eyes turned to look over at Jiraiya's and the man smiled beneath his mask. He had a plan.

There weren't very many shinobi outside the burning building so they weren't much of a threat. Those that were sneering their way wouldn't be much of a threat either. Sakumo managed to catch Naru's attention and uttered one soft word. A word he knew he would regret later, but Naru was a genius at creating very unique distractions.

"Centerfold."

She grinned and brought her hands together into a sign Sakumo was getting very familiar with. As much as he hated the technique, he had to admit that Naru was a genius for using one of man's most common and widely known weaknesses against them. Not very many men could ignore a naked, well-endowed blonde. He just hoped his plan didn't backfire with Jiraiya.

Naru grinned and clapped her hands together. "Oiroke no jutsu!"

The henge immediately caught the attention of every one of Hanzo's men. Most could do nothing but stare at the voluptuous blonde woman standing in front of them. A few embarrassingly noticed their noses dripping ever so slightly. The one shinobi holding Yahiko actually loosened his grip on the teenager, completely enthralled by the sight before him.

As soon as Naru started gathering her energy, Sakumo used his body to shield Jiraiya from seeing Naru's technique. The best part about Jiraiya and Sakumo working together was that they knew how to work off of each other. When Sakumo moved, Jiraiya moved towards the shinobi holding Yahiko and snapped his neck. Yahiko bolted from his kneeling position and plowed into Hanzo's side. Toppling the three to the ground instantly. Unfortunately when Hanzo hit the ground, he turned into water.

Yahiko cursed at the water clone and helped Konan to her feet. At first Hanzo was nowhere to be seen, until they realize he was staring Sakumo down as the sliver haired man stood protectively in front of Naru's henged form. Konan summoned up her paper and sneakily twisted it around Hanzo's back leg. Sakumo slashed towards Hanzo with his tanto while Konan tugged on the chakra in her paper, causing Hanzo to fall backwards. Sakumo instantly tackled Hanzo fully to the ground and looked up to ask Yahiko if he wanted the honor of finishing the man off, but Yahiko wasn't in any condition to do anything.

An arm was sticking out of Yahiko's chest. Blood poured out of the wound and fell down the orange haired boy's body to mix in with the muddy rainwater. Sakumo growled low in his throat as the man beneath him melted into water and slipped from his hands. The real Hanzo was standing behind Yahiko laughing.

Something changed in that moment. Chakra burst from Nagato as he shot forward towards Yahiko's dying body and the man holding him up. Jiraiya was the only one to recognize the Rinnegan blazing menacingly in the younger boy's eyes. He could see the pain and despair as Nagato blindly raced forward and missed his target by inches. Hanzo threw Yahiko's body to the ground and turned to grab Konan when Sakumo's tanto suddenly severed his arm at the elbow.

Hanzo hadn't even seen the White Fang move. He bit back a scream of agony and clutched his bleeding stump to his chest as he took several steps away from his dismembered limb. If he hadn't been in so much pain, he would have admired the prowess of both Jiraiya and Sakumo as they sprinted towards him, both with kunais drawn. The last thing Hanzo saw was Nagato's eyes as the young shinobi appeared in front of him, in front of Sakumo and Jiraiya, and slammed a two bloody kunai deep into his eye sockets.

Nagato backed away quickly from the dead body of Hanzo and hurriedly wiped the blood off of his hands. Tears streamed down his eyes, eyes that no long held the ripples of the Rinnegan. Jiraiya reached him first and touched his shoulder, but the red haired boy shook it off. He sniffled and stumbled over to Yahiko's rapidly dying body. Konan had Yahiko's head in her lap and was trying her hardest to keep the rain from falling into his eyes. Once Yahiko realized Nagato was over there, he reached for his friend's hand and roughly laughed.

"Stop…being..a..baby." Konan wiped away the blood that was quickly bubbling up from Yahiko's mouth. Nagato nodded his head and squeezed Yahiko's hand tightly. "You and Konan… You've got to live… Bring about real peace…"

There, right in the middle of the pouring down rain, with three Konoha shinobi looking on, Yahiko, leader of the rebel forces, died passing on his legacy. The wail that went into the air after Yahiko's last breath was rumored to have been heard all around Ame. The final two mourned loudly for their fallen friend.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I don't know exactly how to put this. Our mission kind of failed, but at the same time, didn't. The rebel force is now in power, but they're not in the right mindset to be in control. Hanzo's dead and now Konan or Nagato can finish what Yahiko started. Only problem is that Nagato hasn't come out of his room in over three days and when I say hasn't come out of his room, I mean it. He hasn't eaten or bathed or went to the bathroom that I know of. I'm about five hundred percent sure that isn't healthy.

Konan is holding up better than I thought she would. There's an almost scary calm around her now, but she's taking care of herself. Right now she's taking Yahiko's place as rebel leader and reorganizing most of Amegakure's system. She says she's only doing it until Nagato snaps out of it. Yahiko wanted Nagato to carry on his legacy and she intended for him to do it.

I was beside myself because I didn't know what to do. Nagato wouldn't hear me out and I couldn't get in there, so I took to trying to sneak letters underneath his door. It didn't work out as well as I hoped it would because all my letters were thrust right back to me.

"Naru, step away from the door."

I turned and scowled at Sensei. "Sakumo-sensei, he's not taking care of himself."

"I know. That's why I'm going to go talk to him."

I blinked in surprise as Sensei walked over to the door, broke the doorknob, and walked right into the room. Of course, he had to close the door behind him too. Damn it. I wonder how much trouble I would get in if he caught me eavesdropping. Wouldn't hurt to try.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

"Go away." Sakumo didn't leave. He walked over to where the younger man was lying on the bed and sat down on the edge. "Why won't you all just leave me alone?"

"Because we care Nagato. You're slowly killing yourself."

"I don't need your care! All my life I have dealt with pain and I want to be alone with my pain right now." Nagato looked down at his hands. "Pain, the entire world feels pain; it's the only equalizer besides death. I killed Hanzo because he killed Yahiko, so does that make it right? An eye for an eye? Maybe killing myself will stop the pain."

Sakumo didn't speak to him; instead he reached into the pocket of his chunin vest and pulled out a tattered photograph. The White Fang smiled down at the faces on it before laying it on the bed in front of Nagato. The younger man slowly took the picture and looked at the two faces on the photo. "Is this your family?"

Sakumo nodded and smiled gently. "It is."

"Sakumo, this is a nice picture, but what does it have to do with me?"

Sakumo reached over and took the picture from the other Nin's hands. "You're looking at the same picture I looked at everyday while I was deciding when I should kill myself."

Nagato's face showed the perfect look of horror as he gaped at the older man. "When, not if?"

Sakumo nodded sadly. "I endangered Konoha by not completing a mission and was ostracized because of it. Being the village pariah wasn't good for my mental state and coupled with drinking, I made a very stupid decision. You can ask Naru, since she's listening in on the conversation anyway."

The two heard a soft curse before the door opened to reveal the blonde haired girl. She quickly walked into the room and nodded. "Kakashi and I tried everything we could think of to get him out of his depression, but it almost didn't work."

Sakumo nodded. "They did everything and still it almost wasn't enough. I was determined to end my life."

"What stopped you?"

Sakumo turned to look at Naru and instantly pictured his young son, yelling at him with angry eyes and harsh words. "I suddenly remembered my duty. I remembered I wasn't just a shinobi, but also a father and I couldn't and wasn't going to leave my child behind without a parent." Sakumo turned and stared straight into Nagato's eyes. "You can't let yourself die Nagato. You have a duty too, a duty to complete Yahiko's dream. He trusted you with his final wishes and giving up would be like spitting in his face. If you were from Konoha I would say you have to nurture Yahiko's will of fire."

Nagato looked down and gripped the sheets in his hands. "But what if I can't do it the way he wanted it done? I'm not Yahiko. I'm crybaby Nagato."

Naru grinned in his direction. "You'll never know unless you try."

"Naru's right. You've got to at least try before writing it off as something you can't do. I believe you can do it."

Nagato sighed and pushed the covers away from his body before standing up. Naru smiled again and raced towards the door. "I'm going to get you something to eat!"

Sakumo followed after her, but was stopped by Nagato's soft voice. "Sakumo." He turned and looked at the younger man standing beside the bed. "Do you ever regret the decision you made?"

Sakumo smiled and shook his head. "I've got too much going for me to regret my decision to live. Give it time and you'll see exactly what I'm talking about."

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

Nagato began slowly taking up Yahiko's role and found that people were just as drawn to him as they were to Yahiko. With a new government to establish and borders to protect, the remaining Ame Orphans suddenly became very busy. The last day we were in Ame we found Nagato and Konan both sorting through Hanzo's records. Surprisingly enough there wasn't a lot of resistance from Hanzo's loyal shinobi; they just kind of went with the flow and claimed loyalty to the new leader.

Sensei said we could leave knowing we'd not only made a friend, but a potential ally. We both knew they were in no condition to help with the current war, but given a few years they could easily be a strong force.

Jiraiya sent the Hokage our mission report a week ago and now we've just received word that a huge battle is converging in the middle of Kusa. Hokage-jiiji is sending as many shinobi as he can spare and if we survive he promised we'd get a few months leave. I hadn't seen in Konoha in almost two years and was dying to get back.

Oh and did I mention Nagato and Konan's office? They have a beautiful view of the village and right behind Nagato's desk is a charcoal drawing of a cluster of daffodils with rain falling around it. Talk about a rebirth. I thought the drawing would be much safer and symbolic in that office than in my pack.

"Come on Naru, let's head to Kusa!"

"Coming Sensei!"


	37. Part 2: Chapter 7

**Part 2: Chapter 7**

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

"Fudo moved you inside his house?"

Kakashi nodded his head weakly and stared at the kitchen table. He had just completed telling the two adults about Fudo's request, but he left out the kiss. His mind is still reeling from the past few hours. The silver haired boy can't wrap his mind around what just occurred. Everything happened so fast. One minute he was seeing his newest living quarters and the next he was kissing the daughter of his target. He can still feel Takara's lips against his and the warmth in his cheeks that refused to leave.

Minato was staring in disbelief at the young boy sitting at the kitchen table with a sad smile on his face. He didn't like thinking about the show Kakashi was putting on for this little girl. He silently hoped this wouldn't affect his student's future love life. He wanted Kakashi to rely on his own emotions, not on the ones Tsukiko was teaching him to play with.

Tsukiko sat on the opposite end, deep in thought, but obviously overjoyed at the new turn of events.

"Well, Baby Fang, you just made your job a lot easier, but mine a whole lot harder. I still have to teach you weaponry and the actual art of killing. We'll work it out, don't worry."

Minato turned to stare at the woman in complete anger and disbelief. "I don't like him being so far away from us. What if he gets found out?"

"He won't. Fudo is obviously keeping him there because of his daughter, so anything he does that doesn't seem quite right is going to be dismissed by the man. With Baby Fang here holding little Takara's fragile heart in his hands he can do no wrong."

Kakashi flinched when she said those words and wished she would have said 'Hikaru' instead of 'Baby Fang.' He doesn't like thinking about his trickery. Minato noticed the flinch and stored it away to ask the boy later. This was bothering Kakashi more than he let on. Minato didn't want his student that far away from him, but he had no choice. They couldn't refuse Fudo's offer because it would draw suspicion their way. Honestly, what kind of poor family would refuse having their son taken in by a wealthy advisor? There was no other option except to let Kakashi go. With a heavy sigh, Minato looked past Kakashi and waved his student into the other room.

"Fine, Kakashi go get your stuff. We'll be in touch, just promise me you'll be careful."

Kakashi promised and quickly packed a few of his clothes before heading towards the main house.

* * *

Abe Fudo wasn't a powerful shinobi and really couldn't be classified as a shinobi. He was strictly an advisor with a brilliant mind for espionage and battle formations. In less than sixty seconds he could think up multiple scenarios to solve a problem and still have time left over to think up more. Onoki valued his mind to the extent where he wanted to have shinobi guard Fudo's house, but the red haired man disagreed with his kage. He wasn't widely known yet and truly believed those that did know would never get close enough to hurt him. Between the many secret passages and rooms in the castles, even if someone did try something he could easily get away.

Another important reason was that his brother, Koji, was at one time a powerful shinobi before he suffered his breakdown. Though his mind wasn't the most stable at times, Koji was still a powerful shinobi and was more than enough to take care of whatever enemy dared to try something. Koji had a special talent, a talent that made him a formidable opponent before his mental breakdown. He was the one that reinvented the Meisaigakure no jutsu. His version not only covered the user's scent, but also chakra. It made his version of the camouflage technique almost impossible to see without some type of eye dojutsu.

So Fudo wasn't worried about someone killing him in the middle of the night, but he was worried about his only daughter's heart. She was eleven-years-old and falling head-over-heels for the black haired boy that lived in the cottage at the edge of his property. According to Koji the boy was of noble blood through his mother's side, but even then Fudo worried for his daughter. The boy couldn't have been any older than nine, but he acted so much older. Fudo wondered if that was from the hardships he faced in life or was he trying to play his baby girl. God help him if he was because hell hath no fury like a father with a sharp kunai.

* * *

The first night Kakashi stayed in the main estate was strange. The room was too big, the moon too bright and the sounds too nonexistent for him to fall asleep. Try as he might, he couldn't fall asleep. Seeing that he was just wasting time by sitting in his bed, Kakashi got up and walked over to the balcony. He was looking at the bright moon overhead when he sensed a presence behind him. He didn't have a kunai on him, but he did have his fists, so whoever it was wouldn't last long.

"Chill, Baby Fang, it's me."

Kakashi let out a sigh of relief as he turned to look at his whispering teacher. He pulled her into his room and stared at her with raised eyebrows. "What are you doing here?"

She was in her regular ANBU clothing instead of the henged appearance of Nemoto Kazumi. She walked over quietly and sat down on Kakashi's bed. Once she was seated comfortably on the bed she cast the privacy jutsu and smiled at Kakashi. "I'm here to start your weaponry training. Since we have this huge opportunity staring us in the face right now I want to take it while we have it."

She walked over and pulled Kakashi into the center of the room. "Straighten your back and stand at attention." Kakashi did as just as she said as she started circling him. "I've trained you to walk and move like an assassin. I've trained you how to interact with silly little girls and I've taught you human manipulation. Now I need to teach you how to kill. It's more than just shoving a kunai into someone's heart or slitting their throat. It's so much more than snapping necks and breaking spines. Quick, what are the eight automatic kill zones on the body?"

Kakashi's mind zeroed in on all of the studying he had done during and after the Academy. There were eight parts of the body that were vulnerable no matter how hard or often a shinobi trained their body. "Liver, lungs, spine, larynx, kidneys, heart, jugular and subclavian veins."

Tsukiko nodded. "Good boy. Now, each weapon has a different strength and weakness. Kunais are extremely versatile and the easiest to use during an assassination. They not only slice, but stab. I wouldn't suggest using shurikens unless you have to kill a target from afar and even then I suggest using senbon. Shurikens are too big and easily traceable whereas senbon are light, small and nearly invisible in daylight. Katanas and tanto work too, but they're harder to carry silently around your target."

The blue haired woman reached into her weapons pouch and pulled out several small bags of different items. "There will be times when your mission details tell you to make it look like an accident. That's when you get to get creative. Normal weapons won't work then, so you're going to have to improvise." She reached into one of the bags and pulled out a long strand of string. "This is just everyday string, but it's perfect for strangulation. If the string is pulled against the neck right below the jaw line at the crease, then it easily looks like a natural indention in the skin."

Kakashi watched obediently as she took out a small bag of pills and a bag of powder. "Drugging and poisoning works excellently for a quick and quiet assassination. Not only is the cause of death not found out until later, but a lot of these deaths will simply be written off as accidental or suicides by the coroners. Or you could always use these." Tsukiko reached deep into a black bag and pulled out a small capped mushroom. "This little beauty is called a 'death cap mushroom.' It's a deadly poisonous fungus that takes a while to work, but its symptoms don't show immediately and when they finally do, they're worth the wait."

Suddenly footsteps sounded along the hall outside Kakashi's door. Tsukiko froze and looked back towards the closed and locked door. "Someone's coming. We'll finish this later."

Just as Tsukiko was disappearing out the open balcony window, the lock of Kakashi's door unlocked with a loud 'click.'

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

Now who the hell was this coming into my room at this ungodly hour of the night? A part of me figured it was going to be Takara, but the chakra and sound of footfalls didn't match hers. I quickly hopped into bed just as the door swung all the way open and closed lightly. I feigned sleep as a large figure moved over to my bedside and watched me sleep. I think it was the single creepiest thing I had experienced in a long time.

The chakra was too strong to be Fudo, too large to be Takara and too sinister to be Sensei. I laid there as quietly as I could before pretending to roll over in my sleep, this way I was facing the figure and if I played it just right I could easily peek at them without them finding out. As my left eye slowly opened I quickly discovered exactly who it was, it was Koji.

The red haired man was just standing beside my bed with his eyes closed. I could feel my heart thumping loudly against my chest as he reached down towards my face. I tensed my arms and got ready to give this man the fight of his life when his hands quickly changed course and grabbed one of my pillows. He lifted it, tucked it underneath his arm and walked back out the door. I stared after him, utterly confused, before slowly following him into the hallway. At least I got a chance to practice my stealth skills.

Koji simply continued walking before stopping at the stairs and turning towards a bedroom door. He pried it open and entered it. I continued following close behind and entered the room after him. We were in what looked to be a large office. Koji walked around the desk to the lone plush couch and sunk down on it. That's when I realized the man was a sleepwalker. He was asleep the entire time I was following him, but from the looks of this office, I may not come away from this experience empty handed.

The room was dimly lit, but I could see fine through the darkness that was there. The walls housed several fully filled bookshelves and a couple of cabinets. I immediately began searching through the cabinets, but found all of them to be locked. Damn, of course they would be locked. Koji rolled over on the couch and snored loudly, causing me to freeze in my search. Once he settled down I made my way over to the desk and began searching through the files stacked there.

Apparently this wasn't Fudo's desk because there wasn't anything important in the files, except a couple of receipts and money ledgers. This had to be Koji's desk. I sighed and dropped the folders back on the desk. I turned to walk out the door when a piece of paper on the floor caught my attention. The only problem was that it was located right in front of the couch Koji was sleeping on. I walked over and leaned down slowly, constantly keeping my eyes on Koji, before grabbing the paper. I backed away from his sleeping body and scanned the paper, it wasn't much, but it had a note written across the top of it and was signed by the Tsuchikage himself.

 _Our plans will continue as scheduled._

It was a suspicious note, but nothing about it seemed important. I sighed and dropped it back on the floor before heading out the door and back to my room. I needed to catch at least a few hours of sleep before Takara came to find me.

 **(Narrator POV)**

What Kakashi didn't notice as he walked out of the room was Koji rolling over and grinning widely as he pocketed the accidentally dropped note.

* * *

The next night, after a full day of following Takara around like a lovesick puppy, Kakashi practically collapsed into bed, only to jump back up as he noticed a figure appear on the balcony. He quickly reached underneath the bed and pulled out a knife he had nicked from the kitchen earlier. As dangerous as it was, Tsukiko didn't want him carrying regular shinobi weapons while in the house. He would have to get creative if anything went down before they were scheduled to assassinate Fudo.

Kakashi silently walked over to the balcony door and peered into the night only to find Minato leaning against the rail of the balcony. Kakashi rolled his eyes and hissed at his Sensei to come inside before someone caught him. Minato just gave his student a sly smirk before walking into the room and sitting down on the bed. The privacy jutsu was already in place, so they wouldn't have to worry about others hearing their conversation.

"I just wanted to check on you. I worry about you being all the way up here. I can't get to you as easily."

"I'm going to be fine Sensei. You don't have to worry about me."

Minato chuckled and smoothed out some wrinkles on the bedspread beside him. His expression turned serious as he sighed and stared at Kakashi. "I really came up here to see if you were okay. What happened between you and Takara? You've been so distant lately."

Kakashi broke Minato's gaze and suddenly found the print on the wallpaper very interesting. It was only the blush that raced across the young boy's face that alerted Minato to how intimate the encounter must have been. "Well, Sensei…she, I mean we, kind of kissed."

Minato's eyes softened slightly as he realized exactly what his student was going through. His two years in ANBU weren't pretty nor were they a time in his life he liked to remember. His parents were killed while he was on an ANBU mission and even then he couldn't attend the funeral because he was knee deep in the swamps searching for a missing-nin. He remembered watching one of his teammates seduce their target as the kunoichi put everything into her kisses and lingering touches. The kisses were what always got a target. It was the kiss of death and usually laced with some kind of disorienting poison. The blond haired man remembered the kunoichi disliking kissing in general because of her job. He didn't want Kakashi to grow up hating parts of his life because he wanted to be an assassin.

"That's okay Kakashi just promise me something."

Kakashi looked up at him and Minato could see the relief in those eyes. "What, Sensei?"

"Always keep work and pleasure separate. Just because you've kissed this little girl, don't think this means you can't kiss another little girl. I don't want you regretting something later in life. Just keep in mind that this is just part of the mission and before you know it, it'll be over."

Kakashi nodded and went back to looking at the print on the wallpaper. "Sensei?"

"Hmm?"

"Should I feel ashamed that I kissed her back? I feel horrible because don't girls have this sacred rule about their first kiss?"

Minato laughed quietly to himself and nodded his head. "Yes, most girls do have this sacred rule, but don't worry about that. What Takara doesn't know won't hurt her. For now, let Hikaru be everything she needs and when the time comes for you to leave, then we'll work that out then."

Kakashi grinned at the older man. "Thanks, Sensei."

"No problem 'kashi, giving sagely advice is what I'm here for."

Kakashi rolled his eyes as he went to push Minato off of his bed. "Watch out or your head won't fit through the door."

* * *

Kakashi spent the next month running notes between Koji and Fudo, as well as running errands around the village. It took him a while to map out the village in his mind, but soon Kakashi found himself running around like he was born there. Perhaps his knowledge of the village layout would come in handy one day.

Takara couldn't keep away from him. She always had a smile on and tried her hardest to get him to laugh and play with her. Kakashi played his part of Hikaru well and usually did whatever the girl asked him to do, but he refused to kiss her again. She respected that, but the look of pain in her eyes was still there after his rejection. Kakashi hoped she would one day forget about Hikaru and find someone worthy to bestow her affections on.

Fudo took a near instant liking to Hikaru and made sure to spend at least an hour a day in the boy's company. He knew how much his daughter liked the boy and wanted to make sure she wasn't crushing on a complete jerk. His fears were settled, though, because the more time he spent with Hikaru, the more he was getting used to the idea of having him as a future son-in-law. He partially played with the idea of presenting an arranged marriage offer to Hikaru's parents.

Koji liked Hikaru too much. His eyes would linger on the boy more than necessary. He had also taken to touching Hikaru. It was a touch that sent shivers of disgust down Kakashi's spine. He tried to not let it get to him, but something in the back of his head was screaming 'danger' at him.

Once the world was quiet and all the people of the Abe estate were in the bed, Tsukiko took her cue and appeared outside of Kakashi's window for his next lesson. She hadn't been back since the close call about a month ago. Tonight she came with an entire bag of stuff. "I've been snatching supplies from the village. You're learning about poisons tonight. As you know there are many poisons all around the shinobi world, some are extremely toxic while some aren't."

Kakashi sat on the floor and watched as Tsukiko pulled out a vial of colorless liquid. "This is hydrogen cyanide, extremely deadly to not only the victim, but also the attacker." Tsukiko grinned as she tossed the vial into the air and caught it again. "It can kill a human in less than ten minutes. So it's really not the best poison to use whenever you're in close range of your target."

Kakashi's eyes widened as Tsukiko placed the vial on the floor and pulled out a bag of white pills. "These are some of the pills I was going to show you the other day. They're Ison pills. At one time they were used as medication to treat a number of disease and were used by the T&I department for antidepressants about twenty years ago. Unfortunately for the shinobi on this medication, it usually caused more problems than they originally had. This drug has several nasty side effects, including some central nervous system issues, hepatitis, seizures and liver problems."

Kakashi took the bag from her hands and looked at the small letters carved into the front of the pill. "Sounds like it causes everything except death."

Tsukiko shrugged and took the bag back from Kakashi. "Yes, but if you're trying to assassinate a target over a long period of time without drawing suspicion to yourself it would be smarter to make your target get really sick. That way fingers can't be pointed back at you when you finally kill him off."

Kakashi thought over the devious nature of her suggested plan before reaching down to pick up another vial of liquid. "What's this?"

"That is hydrofluoric acid, extremely difficult to work with because it's so corrosive. It's really a weak acid, but if it gets into the blood stream it can cause cardiac arrest in the victim."

"What if I mistakenly get some of this stuff on me? Are there antidotes to these poisons?"

Tsukiko nodded her head. "Most of them do have antidotes. Pure cyanide's antidote is sodium nitrite, while the Ison's antidote is Pyridoxine. Each of the ones I've showed you have some sort of antidote. Don't worry, if you're smart then you'll always know which poison you're going to use for which assassination so you can carry the antidote with you."

Kakashi nodded and cautiously helped Tsukiko place all of the poisons back into her bag. The woman stood up and waved 'bye' to Kakashi before heading over to the window. "Tsukiko-sempai?"

She stopped and looked back at Kakashi. "Yes?"

"What if I somehow mess this up?"

"Well, if you fail, we'll only die."

Kakashi raised an eyebrow at the woman before snorting and walking over to the bed. "Thanks for the confidence."

"No problem. Next time we'll work on hand-to-hand combat. You'll rarely use it, but it's useful to know just in case. So meet me in the cave around this time and Kakashi, I'm not playing around this time. It's time to step up your training."

"I'll be there."

* * *

The next night Kakashi met Tsukiko at the cave and was instantly met with a barrage of weapons sprouting from the mouth of the rock dwelling. The boy barely managed to dodge as another onslaught came at him faster than the one before. He managed to catch his breath and quickly raced into the opening, dodging a torrent of senbon. Unfortunately one embedded itself into his shoulder and caused the muscle around it to pulse in pain.

"I'm disappointed. That was a joke. What kind of assassin doesn't even check his surroundings before walking into a potential deathtrap? Stuff like that gets you killed kid."

Kakashi groaned and removed the senbon from his shoulder. "I didn't expect you to start off trying to kill me."

"Well, what did you expect?"

Kakashi shrugged despite the small throb and grinned teasingly at the woman. "I don't know a hug or perhaps a greeting would have been nice."

Kakashi honestly never saw the fist that plowed into the side of his head as Tsukiko rushed forward. He was too busy trying to blink the dots from his eyes to even notice her foot as it kicked him squarely in the chest and made him gasp for precious oxygen. The boy pulled himself to his knees and glared at the woman standing in front of him with her arms across her chest. He vaguely noticed that his father's amulet had fallen out of his shirt and was gently clicking against the stone ground.

He coughed the air back into his lungs and clutched his chest as he glared harder at the woman, willing her to burst into flames with his eyes. "What was that for?"

She walked closer and hauled Kakashi up by the front of his shirt. "I told you I wasn't going easy on you. You have to always be on your toes because the second you're not is the second that you die. I'm not playing around any longer. I've danced around this for weeks because your sensei doesn't think my training is appropriate for you at this age. Well, Sensei isn't here right now. I am and we're going to get some things straight."

Tsukiko looked down at Kakashi's chest and saw the amulet resting against the outside of his shirt. Blinking with interest, she reached down and pulled it up to her eyes. Before Kakashi could react, Tsukiko tugged the chain holding the amulet and his dog tags with enough force to break the chain. The dog tags clattered to the floor, but the amulet caught on the end of the chain. She unceremoniously dropped Kakashi to the ground and walked away from him. All Kakashi could do was sputter in outrage as she twirled the chain around her finger with the amulet swinging carelessly in the air.

"Give that back!"

The woman regarded Kakashi with an uninterested eye before tightly grasping the amulet in her hand and sticking it into her pocket. "Why should I?"

Anger flooded Kakashi's senses as he glared at the woman. He immediately made to attack her. She waited until he was right in front of her before sidestepping and elbowing him roughly in the middle of his back. The motion caused him to stumble forward and hit the ground hard with his knees. Tsukiko was on him in that exact instant, gripping his hair and pulling Kakashi backwards to look up at her. It was a painful angle for his back, but the ANBU needed him to understand the lesson she was trying to teach him.

"Right now, you're no shinobi. Attacking in anger, letting that anger blind your movements and utterly looking like a green genin instead of a seasoned chunin. You disgust me right now."

She released Kakashi's hair and quickly flipped him onto his back only to pin him down with her foot. The toe of her sandal dug into his throat as she applied pressure and watched his eyes water up from the effort to breath. He was clawing at her foot and trying everything to get the larger woman off of him, but nothing was working. Suddenly, Kakashi seemed to remember his fight or flight responses and kicked her other leg just enough to throw off her balance and remove her foot from his throat. He kicked away from the woman and frantically tried breathing air into his lungs as he watched her with a narrowed eye. His hands were trying to soothe the pain from having his windpipe clenched off.

She reached into her pocket and pulled out the amulet. She looked back and forth between the amulet and Kakashi before gathering chakra into her hands and snapping the amulet in two. Tears burned in Kakashi's eyes as he watched her juggle both pieces. Tsukiko looked down at him in disgust.

"Shinobi rule 25." Kakashi blinked the wetness from his eyes and lowered his hands from his throat. Tsukiko growled again. "Shinobi! What is rule 25?"

Kakashi coughed once before speaking in a raspy voice. "A shinobi must never show emotions."

"Again."

"A shinobi must never show emotions."

"Again."

"A shinobi must never show emotions."

"I can't hear you. Again!"

Kakashi coughed and willed himself to not growl at the woman in front of him, his eyes were dry and menacing as he opened his mouth and gave her exactly what she wanted. "A shinobi must never show emotions!"

Tsukiko stopped speaking and walked over to where Kakashi was standing. "Live by that rule. You remember what happened to daddy after he broke the rules. Emotions are useless in this field. I don't want a half-assed attempt; I want everything you've got. I'm done for now. I expect you here and ready tomorrow night."

Kakashi didn't question her as he walked over and picked up his dog tags before racing to the house.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

A shinobi must never show emotions.

I hadn't thought about that rule in years. It was one of the most important rules in the ninja code, second only to rule number four; a shinobi must always put the mission first. Funny, Dad broke both of those and he turned out alright.

Emotions, nasty little things all humans had and yet here Tsukiko was telling me I needed to bury mine. Naru will be so disappointed; she's worked so hard to bring me away from that hardened shell I used to be. Dad will be disappointed too. A part of me knows that he is expecting me to come back as his 'Ka-chan,' but I may have to disappoint him. Sensei's going to be upset too. I hope he never finds out about this training session because if he does then Tsukiko won't be breathing much longer.

It all came down to one question, could I reattach the cold persona I remember from the other timeline? I don't even know if I wanted to. It was fun actually being a child. It was fun knowing my Dad was right behind me every step of the way. It was everything I didn't have before.

Perhaps I played the child too long. Perhaps I enjoyed my newfound youth too much. Perhaps Tsukiko was right. Perhaps this is what I need to ensure the future's survival.

Naru's going to be so disappointed.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

The next night, Kakashi came to Tsukiko battle ready. _Hanshou_ strapped to his back and a particular gleam in his eyes. A gleam that sent shivers down Tsukiko's spine. Instead of succumbing to the gleam, she grinned and took out the broken amulet showed Kakashi his prize before stuffing it back into her pocket. With a wink of her eye, they were both off.

Kakashi didn't make the first move; he waited for Tsukiko to go. The woman decided to humor him and raced forward, her hands running through seals and jumped over Kakashi. The boy pivoted sharply on his heel and dodged as a fire jutsu barely missed scorching his left arm. Tsukiko took his moment of distraction to reach behind her and pull out a standard ANBU katana.

Just as Kakashi regained his balance, Tsukiko flew forward with her katana held behind her, ready to strike downward. As the blade was coming down, Kakashi put all of his weight into swiping upward with _Hanshou_. It worked and threw Tsukiko's blade off its target path, giving Kakashi enough time to attempt to kick her feet out from under her. It worked for only a few minutes because as soon as Tsukiko felt herself going down she immediately fell into a roll and bounced right back into action. Kakashi swung his body around as Tsukiko appeared behind him and shoved his shoulder hard into her ribs. The resounding 'crack' never sounded sweeter to Kakashi then it did at that moment. Tsukiko didn't even howl in pain as he broke her ribs. No, she simply grimaced and elbowed Kakashi in the back.

He stumbled forward and regained his balance just in time to block another swipe from Tsukiko's katana. Kakashi knew he wasn't going to last going toe-to-toe with the older jounin much longer, so he needed to think up a plan. He reached into his weapon's pouch and felt around for a smoke bomb. If he could distract her, then maybe he could get close enough to grab the amulet halves from her. He would have to time it just right, though. Kakashi waited until Tsukiko raced forward again before throwing the smoke bomb and quickly running through the seals for a shadow clone. He sent his shadow close to deal with Tsukiko while he waited in the shadows above.

Tsukiko immediately took the bait and tried to fight off shadow clone Kakashi, never suspecting the real Kakashi was waiting above her. Just as clone Kakashi was dispelled by a quick cut from Tsukiko's katana, the real Kakashi dropped from the ceiling. He rolled as he landed and poured chakra into his feet so he could jump over her. All he needed to do was get behind her so he could grab the amulet pieces. Once his chakra was hot and pulsing around his feet, he jumped and flew over her head. Tsukiko tried to recover, but she didn't have enough time to pivot as Kakashi grabbed the amulet from her back pocket and quickly backed away from her. Kakashi grinned to himself as he finally realized the amulet was in his hand, not only did he get his prize, but he also had a clean kill shot right through her kidneys.

Tsukiko cursed before holding a hand up. "Match over. You got your amulet back, but be warned, this is only going to get harder. I'm training an assassin, not a child. Next time you come with your all the first time around."

She disappeared, leaving Kakashi to stand there transfixed at the spot she once occupied. He sighed and headed back to the main estate just as the sun began to peek over the clouds.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

Tsukiko and I trained every night and the more we trained, the more I hated her. The amulet was ruined and I couldn't help the anger that coursed through my veins whenever I thought about it, but even if I was angry, I didn't let my emotions show when I was with her. I found myself easily falling back into the old emotionless person I was and not really caring. I had a job to do and if I wanted to protect Konoha then I was going to do it right. Sensei didn't agree. Tsukiko was right; he did flip out after seeing the aftermath of our training. Since the cave was protected with a jutsu there wasn't any way he could have seen it happening, but with Tsukiko's broken ribs from the second night and my cracked knuckles, he would have had to be stupid to not realize what was going on. Trust me, Sensei was far from stupid.

We were nearly half-a-year into our mission by the time Sensei and Tsukiko started preparing for the big night. I had learned a lot under Tsukiko's guidance and could probably do amazingly well if we tried to assassinate Fudo now, but Tsukiko didn't think the timing was right. She said I was too inexperienced and too green to go now. She didn't know how I would fare and regardless of what she said before, she really didn't want me to die on her watch. She had spent too much time training me to let that all go to waste. So I patiently waited until she gave the green light. I kind of had the feeling she wasn't sure if I could even do it. She was still on my case about being emotionless, because that's what ANBU were, emotionless. She said it would be a lot easier to learn now then find out later and endanger my future team.

"Hikaru!"

I sighed and ran towards Fudo's voice. He appeared to be in the kitchen or at least that's the direction his voice was coming from. I stopped right outside the kitchen door and pushed it open to reveal my 'parents' standing before the man.

"Hikaru, your Mom and Dad have some news for you."

'Kazumi' took a step forward and smiled softly. "We're leaving town for a little while. Would you like to go?"

I really hoped this was code for 'we're going on a training trip.' I put on my best 'excited' look and quickly asked when we were leaving. 'Minori' smiled and informed me that we were leaving as soon as I packed. I quickly ran up the three flights of stairs and grabbed whatever I could. I was out the door with my 'parents' before anyone could stop me.

Once we were far enough away from the estate, I turned to Sensei and Tsukiko. "So? Where are we going?"

Tsukiko smirked and pointed, "We're going on a vacation. Our new apartment is right over there."

I looked down the dark and dirty alley to see where she was pointing. It wasn't exactly what I could call a luxury hotspot, but agreed with whatever she had up her sleeve. Shinobi rule ten stated that a shinobi must never question their leading ninja. See, it was getting easier to spew back the rules in response to everything. Once we found the broken door and walked up the stairs and over a homeless guy, we finally found our apartment.

Tsukiko firmly shut the door and had Sensei put up a privacy seal and thoroughly check the room before dropping her henge. Sensei and I followed her lead.

I stretched my cramped muscles and ran a hand through my hair as I turned to Tsukiko. "So what are we doing?"

Sensei sighed and tossed his bag on the lone couch in the room. The anger written on his face made me sick to my stomach. Tsukiko's training was messing with my head. Both Sensei and Dad didn't follow the rules closely, so why is it important that I do? "Tsukiko thought it would be a good idea to test out your new skills."

The confusion must have shown on my face because Tsukiko grabbed my hand roughly and pointed towards the streets below where several hookers, bums and drunks littered the street. I felt like breaking one of her fingers. "We are in Iwa's notorious 'orange light' district."

"Isn't it supposed to be called a 'red light' district?"

Tsukiko shook her head. "No, their red light district is to the north and a whole lot nicer than this. This is where the same things take place, but it's dangerous out there. Drug dealers and prostitutes run this part of Iwa. The worst of the worst always find their way down here. On any given day you can find abusers of any drug or alcohol and criminals from all walks of life." She turned and stared straight into my eyes. "This alley is filled with people that won't be missed."

Very suddenly I realized exactly what they meant by 'testing out my skills.' They wanted me to try my skills out on the people below us. That wasn't assassination that was murder.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Minato could see the argument in his student's eyes and knew his own matched. It was hard to think about killing in cold blood; especially just to see if you can do is successfully. Assassination for the Hokage was one thing, but assassination for practice was another. He fought Tsukiko on this tooth and nail, but in the end the ANBU woman was right. They needed to be sure he wasn't going to freeze or botch the mission in any way. If Kakashi made a mistake, then none of them would make it out of Iwa alive.

While Kakashi and Tsukiko started a glaring contest, Minato sat behind the table and quietly reached into his bag. He had originally flipped out completely after Tsukiko told him what Kakashi's exercise was going to be. He had every right to. She was practically giving him a license to kill. That didn't sit well with Minato because her exercise was too much like ANBU style missions. The innate desire to protect his student caused Minato to brainstorm for any possible way to lessen the impact this exercise was going to have on Kakashi's psyche. He knew he didn't have the authority to keep Tsukiko from training Kakashi, but he could work the training exercise into a just cause. It took him nearly three weeks, but Minato found 'kill on sight' bounties on many of the people residing in the alley below them.

He was going to help Kakashi through this, even though he really wanted to keep him from it. He spread his papers out in front of him and turned around to complete the look. By the time Kakashi finally noticed what he was doing, Minato was fashioning a robe out of the old drapery.

"Sensei? What are you doing?"

Minato looked up from his task and tried to ignore the looks in both sets of eyes staring him down. "I'm making this easier for you. I'm going to pretend to be the Hokage so I can assign you missions. I figure it's great practice for when I become Hokage and you won't feel so guilty about your job."

Tsukiko snorted and flicked her bangs out of her eyes. "You Hokage?"

"You better believe it."

Kakashi smiled at his sensei before slowly letting his smile drop into a frown. "It's still killing just because I can."

Minato pushed a couple of papers towards Kakashi. "Down this alley are some of Iwa's nastiest criminals, but this isn't a place the shinobi and police force like visiting. I've got information on several criminals that have committed crimes against not only Iwa, but other shinobi nations including Konoha. It's taking the law into your own hands, but it's better than letting yourself think your killing just for the heck of it. So what do you say Kakashi?" Minato held up a picture and grinned. "Will you take this mission from me?"

Kakashi nodded as Tsukiko let out a sigh of relief. "Great, now listen closely kid. Fudo is hosting a huge party in exactly five months, there are going to be a lot of big name people there. All sorts of generals and daimyos are going to be in attendance. We're going to strike the night following the party. Fudo always gives his servants the next two days off after a huge party like that. Koji is also going to be out of town, leaving Fudo nearly completely by himself. It's the perfect opportunity to strike and I plan to have you completely ready by then."

"Okay, let's get started then."

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

Tsukiko went with me on the first night of my 'on location' training. She wanted to make sure I took all the precautions I could to not get caught. My first target was a sixty-five-year old man that I didn't have a name for. Sensei had all the names scratched off from the papers. I guess he didn't want me to feel guilty about what I was going to do. He did leave the man's crimes on there, though. I was looking for an older man, bald, three earrings in his right ear, and last seen wearing a necklace that looked suspiciously like a human tongue. His crime? He was once a shinobi that turned on his squad mates and killed them in cold blood, but not before raping his two female teammates and gutting his male one. How he got away with those crimes, I never want to know.

Tsukiko walked behind me as we traveled through the darkened alley. Not a single sound reverberated around the stone alley as we glided past people. No one even noticed our presences as we slowly looked for the man. Tsukiko caught sight of him earlier during the night and now we were slowly following behind him. He suddenly veered off towards the right and squatted down on the floor. His hands automatically rummaging through what looked to be a pile of rags, but it wasn't a pile of rags. It was actually a person sleeping along the side of the alley.

I didn't need Tsukiko's firm push to tell me that this was my cue. Silently, I walked forward and stopped right behind the crouching man. His throat was easily accessible and with a quick flick of my wrist, the cold metal of my kunai dug into the soft tissue. Warm blood flew onto my skin as I retracted my weapon and took off into the night. Tsukiko and I were both out of the alley before the man's body hit the ground.

Every night for the next month I went out and hunted down a target. I slowly felt myself become numb to the feeling of warm blood and frantic breathing against my skin. Not all of my targets were men, some were women, but all of my targets shared a common trait. They all went down quietly and never sensed my presence. Tsukiko was proud of me and Sensei was quieter. His eyes still held warmth when they looked at me, but sometimes a dark shadow would pass over them. He just didn't like me having to do this at my age. I tried my hardest to not think about how Dad would react.

Once our month was up, we traveled back to Fudo's house. Leaving behind the orange district, which was looking a little nicer now if I did say so myself. Takara was beside herself with joy once she saw me walk through the front gates. In fact, she was so overjoyed she hugged me the instant she saw me.

"Oh! I've missed you so much!"

I lied back to her and promised that I missed her more. Hikaru was getting better at showing his affection to the brown haired girl, but it would never be enough. I, no he, would never like her the way she wanted to be liked.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Three months passed by entirely too fast for the Konoha trio as the summer wind slowly took on the chilly feel of fall before taking on the even colder touch of winter. Fudo's party was scheduled to take place in the middle of February, a month full of ice and freezing rain. That didn't mean Tsukiko stopped Kakashi's training. No, in fact, the woman took the cold weather as a perfect time to build up Kakashi's endurance. As an assassin there was no telling what conditions Kakashi would be forced to stay in while waiting for a target. Minato hated her techniques, hated the woman herself, but he couldn't do anything about it. It was Kakashi's decision to become an assassin. All Minato could do was sit back and clench his teeth.

As Takara was sent packing to school, her departure was a very wet experience for Kakashi because she cried the entire time she said goodbye to him, Kakashi took the time to think about the past eight months. So much had changed about him since the green April day he left that little inn on the border of Fire Country. He was older now, ten-years-old, taller too, an astonishing four-foot-three-inches, and stronger. He couldn't wait to see how Naru had grown and a part of him hoped he was taller than her, because being shorter than that girl was embarrassing. He had learned so much in the short eight months of being with Tsukiko and begrudgingly admitted he was glad to have trained with her. That didn't mean he still wasn't pissed about the broken amulet now resting comfortably in the inner pocket of his shirt.

With the month being December already, it was time for Kakashi to seriously start thinking about how he was going to assassinate Fudo. The mission details hadn't given him any specific orders, so he figured he could just do it any way he pleased. A huge part of Kakashi wanted to do it while the man was asleep. He couldn't stand to feel his targets struggle weakly against him and preferred to just do it while they were unaware of his presence.

At that point Kakashi slowly formulated a plan. He was going to slip a sedative in Fudo's drink. That way the older, larger man would be sluggish by the time Kakashi made his way into the room to carry out his mission. With a small grin on his face, Kakashi ran out of the main estates to see if Tsukiko had something similar to what he was looking for.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

Have I mentioned how soon February came? It sort of snuck up on us. February meant so much to our group. Not only was it the month our mission was scheduled to end, but it was also the month we would get to leave Iwa. We would soon get to see our friends and family. I know I was itching to get back to Dad and Sensei was itching to get back to Naru and Kushina.

Tsukiko was a mystery to me, so I just assumed she had someone waiting back home for her. I also wanted to get back and see if there was any way to fix the amulet. I was almost ashamed to bring the pieces back to Dad because they meant so much to him and I wasn't able to protect it. I couldn't think about that now, though, the subject was doing nothing more than bringing up unwanted emotions. Emotions I wasn't supposed to have.

The days leading up to Fudo's party the entire estate seemed to be bathed in a joyous atmosphere. The servants giggled and happily talked in the halls as they prepared the estate for the party. The entire main house was scrubbed and decorated in deep tan and bright gold colors. Overall, it was a nice change to the slight chill outside. Iwa didn't get very cold, but every so often one of the winds from the mountains would blow just right over the village and send the inhabitants scurrying for warmer clothes.

The night of Fudo's party was one of those times when the wind was able to find the hidden village. I watched the cloaked partygoers from my bedroom window as they walked around the backyard and chatted idly together. I wasn't really invited because I was technically a member of the elite, so I opted to stay upstairs and plan for the next night. It didn't bother me; the further away from people I was the better.

Sensei and Tsukiko both snuck into my room during the night and planned to stay until after I had completed my part of the mission. We were leaving Iwa tonight with not only our mission completed, but loads of other information. Sensei and Tsukiko both had done their own surveillance while I was working on building connections between myself and the Abe family. I didn't know everything they had found out, but I could tell they were both itching to head home to tell the Hokage. All we had to do was wait a few more hours and then we could go home.

* * *

The night after the party was strangely silent. Without the constant scurrying of the servants and laughter of the guests the estate was as silent as a tomb. Koji left early during the morning, but returned right before nightfall, only to leave again. I tried my hardest to ignore the man because he gave me the creeps. Sensei and Tsukiko were both on edge, but they still maintained their calm auras. I, on the other hand, was jittery and excited. I wanted to get this done and over with. I forced myself to calm down as the hands on the clock moved closer and closer to midnight.

Finally, the hour hit midnight and my two teachers bid me good luck as I left the room. Sensei was almost clingy as he said goodbye. I could tell in his words that he was terrified for me. I pushed those thoughts away as I ever so quietly crept along the hallway as close to the wall as I could. There weren't any servants about so I didn't really have to worry about getting caught at this point, but I wasn't going to pass up the opportunity to practice my stealth.

As I neared the staircase leading up to the third floor, I paused and scanned the area for chakras. There were none, other than Fudo's, so I continued up the stairs until I reached the top step. Fudo's door was shut and soft music was floating from underneath the door as I took my position by the large door. I quickly brought my hands together and made a clone to henge into one of the skeleton crew butlers. My clone would give Fudo the drug that would sedate the older man.

I watched quietly as my clone knocked on the door and was ushered inside. From my position I could hear Fudo happily chat with my clone and take the cup of warm tea from him. The clone walked out of the room and I dispelled him just as he shut the door. All of the memories from being inside Fudo's office came rushing back to me. It was a huge rush and made me dizzy, but I blinked the spots from my eyes and waited for the sedative to take effect.

I constantly checked on the man's chakra to keep track of his level of consciousness. By the end of the hour his chakra was low and steady, past the point of total awareness. I grinned and silently conjured up another clone to enter the room, but this time I followed close on his heel and entered the room behind my clone. Fudo was lightly dosing against his desk as I silently made my way around the desk. I placed my kunai on the edge of his neck and was preparing to slice when something stopped me dead in my tracks.

"Don't even think about it kid."

My heart thudded loudly in my ear as I looked up and saw Koji lounging across the lone couch in Fudo's office. How the hell hadn't I felt his presence? This room was empty. There was no way he was in here the entire time. I refused to remove my kunai and glared at the man. "I have the advantage right now. My blade is against his neck."

Koji shrugged and brought his hands together to form a seal. In just a few seconds I felt his chakra rush over me in a large and concentrated amount enough to overpower the seal. There I was standing before him as Hatake Kakashi. "True, but you would never get out of Iwa if you sliced his neck, especially not with me sitting here. Your information would be all over Iwa within the hour and if we didn't kill you now, then we'd get you eventually."

I growled low in my throat and smirked at him from behind my mask. "You forget something. Even if it means losing my life, I'll complete my mission."

Koji nodded. "Thought you'd say something like that. I've had a funny feeling about you ever since the first time I saw you. Your chakra was too steady to be a simple farm boy's. Something told me I needed to stick close by my brother and imagine my surprise to find out little Hikaru is actually the White Fang's pup. Your father paid me a great injustice once upon a time and I'm going to enjoy returning the favor."

Suddenly I couldn't see him anymore. All I could see was smoke and it wasn't long before his foot connected with my side. I allowed the momentum to slam me into the wall of Fudo's office before sticking there with my chakra and taking a breather. That kick cracked at least two of my ribs. Quickly I rushed him and tackled the older man around the waist, effectively taking him down. He hit the small inn table in front of the couch and completely smashed the fine wood.

I jumped away from him as he tried to grab me and quickly took out another kunai as he continued to struggle on the ground. He grinned and disappeared only to reappear behind me. I kicked back to sweep his legs out from under him, only to have him jump over me. I wildly punched forward and was able to hit him squarely in the kidneys as he landed. His anguished yelp echoed around the room as he lashed out and knocked me back into the smashed table.

With a heavy grunt, I pulled myself up and clutched my aching ribs. The red haired man smirked as he walked over to the bookshelf and remove the katana from its case. "This has been in my family for generations. My older brother wasn't made for the shinobi life and didn't deserve this heirloom, now I'm going to claim it as mine by killing you!"

I watched him closely as he rushed forward with the katana drawn perpendicular to his body. He obviously had no idea what he was doing. I waited until he was close to me before jumping up slightly and pushing my chakra against the metal of the katana. It sang beautifully for a few seconds before bursting into pieces. With the momentum I still had going, I took out a kunai and slammed it home into Koji's eye, the length of it imbedding itself into his brain. I rolled as I landed, which didn't help the pain in my ribs. Koji's body twitched once before stilling and hitting the ground with a soft 'thud.'

The pain in my side was almost unbearable as I hobbled over to Fudo's desk and pushed the man to lean back against his chair. He mumbled slightly, but I didn't stop. I was too far gone to stop. I didn't think about his family. I didn't think about Takara. I didn't even think about anything except letting my kunai carve a new groove into the man's neck. I took another kunai out and sliced across the jugular vein. Bright red blood erupted from the wound and covered the documents in front of Fudo as I released his body and let him drop.

Sensei came into the room as soon as I finished the assassination. "We heard a shout. I don't know who else did so we've got to move now!"

I nodded and walked over to remove the kunai from Koji and pocket the one I used on Fudo. There couldn't be any evidence left behind as to who did the assassination. I quickly put the henge back on so we could leave the estate easily. Everything turned out okay after all.

"Papa? Papa? Hikaru? What did you do to Papa!"

I froze as did Sensei. We both turned to stare at the brown haired girl with tears running down her eyes and a bear clutched in her arms. I vaguely remembered winning her the doll during a street carnival about four months back, for her birthday if I recalled correctly.

She was crying and now screaming frantically for someone. I didn't hear much after that because all of my attention was focused on the blue haired woman that walked up behind the girl. All I could see was the woman taking the smaller head into her hands and twisting harshly. The ringing 'crack' was sickening as Tsukiko gently picked up the cooling body of Takara and placed her gently on the couch. Her face was still twisted into a look of surprise and I couldn't tear myself away from staring deep into her glazed over eyes. I had just witnessed an innocent child dying just because she saw us. This was my fault. If I would have been able to sense Koji then maybe Takara wouldn't have died.

Tsukiko gently placed the bear in Takara's hands before looking over at us. "Come on; let's go before someone sounds the alarm."

It was too late. Footsteps were already banging up the stairs, blocking our exit. Even in my shock, I knew we had to leave. I quickly ran over to where I knew one of the secret passages was located and pushed the door open. This one lead to a door right beside the room I stayed in, which gave us enough time to grab our bags inside my room and escape. All three of us barely made it into the passage as a loud mourning shout came from the hallway.

By the time we all grabbed our bags and jumped from the balcony, shinobi were crawling all over the place. We ended up having to go out a side exit and kill two shinobi before we could completely escape Iwa. We mostly stuck to the back roads and cross the border at a river instead of heading to a checkpoint. They were most likely searching everyone leaving Iwa and I know we wouldn't pass their inspection. It took us the rest of the night and a good part of the morning to get far enough away from Iwa that Tsukiko felt comfortable enough to stop. My ribs were killing me, but my mind was numb.

Takara was dead. The brown haired girl with the soft, too soft, hands and those soft, inexperienced lips was dead. I promptly walked over to the nearest bush and vomited.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Minato wrapped Kakashi's broken ribs tightly with a roll of bandages as they waited for the messenger toad to get back with the Hokage's orders. Their mission was complete. The mission report was sent and the realization that they had just spent ten months deep in Iwa was finally setting in. All they had to do now was go where the Hokage wanted them to and everything would be back to normal, or so Minato hoped.

Kakashi hadn't said much since they stopped, but Minato expected that. He also expected the strong, cold exterior that suddenly snapped up around his student. Kakashi would deal with it in a way Kakashi felt comfortable and if bottling everything up was okay with the younger shinobi then Minato wasn't going to push him. He'd just let Sakumo do that later.

The messenger toad appeared minutes later sporting a scroll tied across his back. He turned to Tsukiko and bowed. "Hokage-sama requests your presence back in Konoha."

Tsukiko nodded before turning to her two teammates. "Well, this is good bye." She took a step forward before stopping and turning back around. "Bab-, Kakashi, you did well. No, you did better than well. Congrats, you've passed my training and I would gladly give you a recommendation for a higher rank. Good luck." She stopped before she left and reached into her pocket and pulled out what looked to be Kakashi's amulet. "I switched the original one at the beginning of our fight. I may be bitchy, but I wasn't going to snap something like that."

Kakashi smiled underneath his mask as he took the real amulet from the woman and quickly put it back in its rightful place. The woman waved before disappearing from their view. In the end he had somehow earned her respect. At least she had finally used his name instead of that hideous nickname.

"The Hokage asked me to give you two this scroll."

Minato reach down and untied the scroll as the toad disappeared in a cloud of smoke. The blond haired shinobi read over the scroll before looking towards Kakashi. "Everyone is converging in the middle of Kusagakure. A huge battle is about to take place and if we hurry, we could make it in time to watch the fireworks."

Kakashi stood up quickly and nodded his head. "Let's go Sensei."

Minato watched as Kakashi took off in front of him. He had a bad feeling about the boy's new personality. He sighed deeply before taking off after the boy who acted too much like a man and, yet, wasn't old enough to be a teenager.


	38. Part 2: Chapter 8

**Part 2: Chapter 8**

* * *

 **(** **Narrator POV)**

"Look at him run! Get'em! Show that little bitch what happens when you play with the big boys."

Blonde hair whipped in the wind as the young shinobi raced across snowcapped hills trying his hardest to outrun the enemy quickly gaining on him. Frantic blue eyes searched for any way out of his dire predicament, but with his chakra levels dangerously low and only one kunai left, the boy was out of options. All he could do was run if he wanted to live.

"Is this the best genjutsu user Konoha has to offer? Running away like a little girl?"

Pale skin flushed angrily, blending in perfectly with the red birthmark running around his neck. In his mind, the young shinobi was shouting obscenities back at his adversaries, but outwardly he was just fighting to get away. He knew he didn't have the time or energy to fire back a taunt of his own.

Nothing had gone according to plan. His simple recon mission quickly turned into a frenzied impromptu battle with himself being severely outclassed by jounin level Iwa shinobi. The boy just didn't understand where their Intel had gone wrong. He also didn't understand why his team hadn't saved him yet. Where was his team? Why weren't they in position? How could they not see him running from three shinobi across an open field?

The blonde haired boy had one option left and that lied with the single kunai nestled in his pocket. He wouldn't have a very clear shot, but anything was better than being chased down like a dog. With surprisingly steady hands, the boy grabbed the kunai and chunked it behind him. Seconds later he was awarded with the pleasant sound of metal ripping through flesh.

"Dammit! Keep going! A single kunai wound isn't going to kill you!"

A smug grin stretched across the young face, a face just beginning to dot with the beginnings of acne, as he heard the wounded shinobi roar in pain. From that small victory, all the boy could think about was making it to camp, all he had to do was make it past the tree line and he would be safe. Feeling lucky, the boy pushed chakra into his feet, unknowingly melting the top layer of snow around him, and commanded his screaming muscles forward. In an unfortunate turn of luck, the young shinobi slipped on the slush of unfrozen snow and crashed into the thicket that served as his team's base camp.

His previous joy collapsed down around his disbelieving shoulders as he took in the scene before him. White snow was thick with red blood and pink tissue. His teammates had literally been ripped apart. The boy didn't even have time to move as a spine crushing blow came from behind him. With a pool of cool dread welling up in his chest, he realized he had forgotten about his pursuers and now had reached the end of his rope.

With no chakra, no shinobi tools, and only his fingernails as weapons, the proud Leaf shinobi blindly clawed the closest body part he could. Only to be met with a solid kick to the throat and a boot pressing uncomfortably against his windpipe. With his back pressed against the bloody snow and precious air dwindling from his lungs, the boy reached up to flip off the sneering shinobi.

"Why are all Konoha shinobi fighters until the end? Gotta hand it to ya kid, you've got spunk, too bad skill beats spunk any day."

"End him you idiot. We've got to get back to camp."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. Sorry kid, but you bore me."

A crushing sound echoed around the thicket as the Iwa shinobi stomped down hard on the young boy's windpipe, collapsing it and breaking his spine, instantly killing the blonde haired fighter. As the Iwa shinobi disappeared, a strong breeze blew across the clearing and carried the strong musk of fresh blood across the snow and to the nostrils of one Hatake Sakumo.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

Traveling with Sensei was a lot like traveling with a bloodhound. The man could pick up scents on the wind and instantly zone in on where the scent was coming from. I don't think I noticed it at first, but whenever he catches the scent of something he feels like he needs to investigate his right hand starts twitching, like it was doing now.

"Naru. Let's go check this out."

"Where are we headin' Sensei?"

Now considering Sensei could sniff out the trouble better than most shinobi, he usually didn't follow the scents he picked up, unless it was something really strong or close. In fact, this was the first time he ever stopped and thought over something he found. It must be something big if Sensei decided we needed to go investigate.

"Just keep close."

Instead of questioning him, I followed behind as closely as I could. It wasn't until a few miles later that I started to smell the heavy scent of fresh blood in the air. Against the wintery background the blood was all the more prevalent and carried farther than it would have during the summer. In front of me Sensei froze and dragged me to the ground just before we crossed the top of a rather large hill. Crawling on his stomach, Sensei made it to the top of the hill and waved me forward.

From my position I could easily make out three Iwa shinobi, one clutching a bleeding leg, one shouting from the top of another hill, and the final one walking out from the small patch of woods less than a half-mile away. I rose up slightly to get a better look, but Sensei dragged me back down and shook his head.

I opened my mouth to question him, but he quickly pressed a finger against his lips to silence me. Quickly his fingers flashed through standard sign language, so quickly I barely caught it.

 _We've got to cut them off._

I nodded and slowly backed down the hill. Sensei followed right behind, his once heavy footsteps going chillingly silent against the crunch of the snow. He grabbed my shoulder once we were out of hearing range and kneeled in front of me.

I need you to make clones, lots of clones Naru. They're going to be our distraction. We're going to see if we can cut them off around this hill range. You take care of the one shouting and I'll handle the other too. I'll signal when I'm in position."

"Gottcha Sensei!"

I turned to perform the jutsu, but he stopped me again.

"Naru, if it looks like he's got company then you abort the mission. Got it?"

"Got it."

"Good girl, on my signal, go!"

I quietly raced across the snow as I performed the seal for the Kage Bunshin no Jutsu. Thirty clones appeared beside me, all sporting similar grins, before jumping onto the top of several of the hills and shouting loudly.

"Over here Iwa bastards!"

I grinned as returning shouts echoed across the field. All I had to do was run up the hill in front of me and I would be in position.

At the top of the hill, I could easily see my clones. They were all wearing the gray traveler's cloaks and every so often a flash of orange would pop out. Yes, a part of my regular uniform is orange, the shirt to be exact. It is my favorite color so why wouldn't it be? I'm stealthy enough to make orange invisible.

Sensei's shrill whistle filled the air, causing the three Iwa shinobi to blink in surprise. I quickly sprung into action, but stopped short to watch Sensei fly into battle. I'd seen him in battle before, but never like he was then. His white chakra glowed and glinted against the white snow, but even that wasn't comparable to the beauty of watching his tanto shimmer in the evening sun.

It was the horrifying sound of his tanto sliding home into the heart of the closest shinobi to him that snapped me out of my stupor. I didn't even attempt to go for the scroll that held my katana. No, I wanted to do this the old fashioned way.

One special order Rasengan coming right up!

One of the clones broke away from the pile and helped me mold my chakra into the comforting ball of chakra, by that time the shinobi I was facing off against was making his way over. I'll never forget the look of pure rage on his face as he sliced his way through clone after clone. I ran forward with my Rasengan emitting an eerie glow around my hand. The man laughed before attempting to side step the swirling ball of charka.

Unfortunately for him, I'm quick on my feet and pivoted at the last minute. My attacked landed right in his side and stung, if his howl of pain was any indication. Clutching his side, he growled and recklessly pushed himself in my direction. What he wasn't expecting was for the kunai I had in my hand to sail right into his temple. He collapsed to the ground like a ton of bricks.

Sensei appeared beside me wiping off his tanto was a piece of torn cloth. I assumed it was from one of the dead shinobi lying on the mutilated snow.

"Should we do something with the bodies?"

Sensei pulled down his mask and shook his head. "We need to get out of here as soon as we see where that other blood is coming from."

"The new blood won't throw off the trail?"

He shook his head. "Nope, old blood smells different from new blood."

I may not have been a tracker, but I could understand that. Thanks to Kyuubi, I had an advanced sense of smell, but Sakumo-sensei's was one honed by years of training. My nose couldn't compare.

"This way."

We didn't have to travel far before the overwhelming scent of almost dried blood and gore hit us. Sensei stopped suddenly and swore rather loudly before mumbling a soft prayer. At first I was confused at his reaction, but looking around his frame and seeing the thicket, I fully understood what was going through his mind.

"They're Leaf Sensei."

"I know Naru. See if you can find their dog tags. We have to hurry up and burn the bodies."

I looked down at the still foot beside mine and sighed deeply. I hated burning the bodies because the scent of burning flesh never left my nose. I didn't see how Sensei stood it. I reached down towards the body slightly in the bushes and removed the dog tag attached to his crushed neck, trying not to wince at the injury. Seeing the name chilled me to the bone.

"Namiashi Ryuu. Sensei, it's Raido's little brother."

Sensei sadly shook his head as he tossed me three other dag tags. Each one bore a name I didn't know, but someone did. Someone's family would never see them again. It was a very sobering thought.

"Let's do this Naru."

I nodded and together we performed a Katon jutsu, lighting the entire thicket on fire. We were gone before the first gust of wind carried the smoke towards the direction where we assumed Iwa's camp was.

* * *

A few short hours later, we were walking into a little town called Sawa. It was a depressing little town with rundown buildings and small shantytown houses made of fabric and the occasional timber siding. I don't think I've ever seen any town look as sad as Sawa did. Sawa was a town defeated by war. They found no joy or riches from the war. Hell, all they gained was heartache as they watched their children die from starvation, battle, and diseases.

As a shinobi, I know I'm expected to do my Hokage's will, but war is such a terrible thing. War turned the nicest people into greedy, twisted souls while destroying magnificent landscapes all in the name of victory. Kusagakure was a prime example of the horrors of war. It used to be such a beautiful place, something that wasn't obvious as I looked around at the beaten and scarred land. Everything around me looked defeated.

The people of Kusa were at one time generally content and thrived happily amongst the greenery that grew in abundance in their countryside. The exotic fields of mushrooms and bamboo made the land unique. None of the other shinobi nations could compare in beauty or uniqueness. The land just held a certain charm to it, with sights of great greenery and the smells of exotic flora. At one time the hills and valleys were filled with blooming flowers, the same flowers that the Yamanaka Flower Shop loved to use because of the flower's health and beauty. It was a place unlike any other, or at least it used to be.

This would be the fifth year since the start of the war, not including the months of fracas before the official beginning of the war. Once again two opposing forces were going to meet in the middle of war weary Kusagakure and the people of Kusa could do nothing but watch. They watched the Leaf and Rock shinobi march through their towns and cities and they mourned. They mourned loudly for the damage their fields and valleys were sustaining. Most of all, they mourned for life as it once was. An entire generation of children was lost to the war and the elders knew the days they remembered where gone. Never again would that carefree innocence bloom across the land. They lost it forever and there was no telling if the lands would ever repair themselves.

Even now as Sensei and I trudged through the first snow of the season, something once celebrated, there was a distinct sadness in the air. The people didn't have the energy or heart to celebrate something that would only be ruined. The innocent white snow that barely covered the hills and valleys would soon turn ugly brown colors. Many of the residents knew it wouldn't be long before bright red accompanied the defiled snow. In their hearts, the people of Kusa hated war, but there was nothing they could do about it. I found myself mourning with them; I had already seen the innocent snow blemished by the blood of comrades and enemies alike.

My thoughts instantly went to a very familiar comrade. Poor Ryuu, he didn't lose a lot of blood from his injury, but his body left an indention in the snow that would forever burn itself into my memory. Death was so final. I clutched the dog tag in my hand and secretly hoped Raido wouldn't take the news too hard. Sensei had told me I couldn't tell Raido about his brother if I saw him. We all needed our minds on the upcoming battle and learning your brother was dead, wasn't a good way to keep your head in the game. It was a cruel viewpoint, but understandable.

I shivered underneath the coat and traveler's cloak I was wearing, more from the coldness of my thoughts than from the temperature. Sensei stopped walking and pointed over towards a field filled with dirty tents, some with the emblem of Konoha proudly stamped on their sides. Camp itself looked more like an extension to Sawa's slum area then it did a shinobi camp.

"There's camp."

I resisted the urge to roll my eyes at the man's depressed tone. I hadn't heard him sound like that since Jiraiya took off, after leaving Sensei to explain to a group of men why their wives complained of a white haired man spying on them while they were bathing. Ero-sennin wasn't with us anymore, the Third called him back to Konoha just as we were crossing the border into Kusa. He had another mission, one of great importance, or so he gloated before he left.

I'm a little shocked to realize that I miss his presence. It reminded me so much of another life altogether. Well, to be honest, I just wanted him to suffer with us. Living in a trench was one thing, but living in a camp was another altogether. Camp life was full of lice, disease, and over the top sex experiences. At least in the trench I could catch lice and dysentery without having to hear obviously exaggerated bedroom stories. Some days it sucks to have heightened senses.

The Konohagakure camp was located in a destroyed field of tall prairie grass towards the eastern side of town. They were a dismal group from what I could tell. Sensei said we were only about five hundred shinobi strong, opposed to the predicted one thousand for Iwa. He also said to keep that information quiet, because we didn't need morale to lower anymore than it already was. The Hokage feared for the mental state of his shinobi, the staggering loses we were experiencing plus the dreary weather beating down upon weary backs wasn't making for very happy ninja.

As we walked through camp, I could see many shinobi and kunoichi huddling together for warmth in front of small fires. The snow wasn't something we were used too, it rarely snowed in Konoha and when it did it usually didn't stick for long. So it was safe to say they were out of their element. The further into camp we walked, the more I realized how beaten my comrades looked. I had been in many Konoha camps, but the one I was in now had to be the most depressing thing I'd ever seen. Weary shinobi and kunoichi were just falling asleep wherever they stopped, regardless if they were in sleeping bags or on the cold ground. The weather was a bit nippy, Sensei and I had to stop before we got into Kusa to change into warmer clothes, but my comrades looked too tired and depressed to care. The weather coupled with inadequate supplies was draining the life out of our forces. We didn't even have enough tents for everyone to be sheltered from the freezing snow.

In the mission report the Hokage sent Sensei, he summarized everything that happened to Konoha's forces while we were in Ame. It wasn't a pretty situation. We needed to win this next battle or the Hokage feared it would be the end for Konoha's forces. The troops needed something to believe it. Which I guess is why the Hokage called Sensei and I to this particular battle, he knew seeing the White Fang would boost morale.

"Sakumo! Naru!"

We turned towards the voice calling our names and were both pleasantly shocked to see Ronin and the other members of our original team. Well, what was left of them. Sometime during the last year we lost two members of our original team. Kenichi and Taro were both killed in a scrimmage near the border of Fire Country. Ronin looked absolutely tortured whenever he told Sakumo-sensei. He blamed himself for sending them scouting when he should have been the one to go since it was his area of expertise. Sensei persistently disagreed with the brown haired man until he finally just ordered the man to let it go. No one could have changed what happened and there was no reason to beat himself up over it. It would only distract him during battle. Ronin seemed a little comforted by the words, but there was still a dark shadow over his normally bright eyes.

I sighed and sat beside the brown haired man. I could tell the situation wasn't good, but I needed to see if all was as it really seemed. "Is everything really as bad as it looks?"

He looked at me and smiled sadly. "Konoha is losing. We haven't won a battle in almost six months. Look around you Naru, our shinobi are weary and losing all hope. We don't have enough weapons or numbers to battle against Iwa. This is the beginning of the end."

I could feel my eyes widen in shock and felt slight anger course through my veins at the defeat in Ronin's voice. Even if all of that was true, we couldn't just give up. The ones that died didn't deserve their deaths to be in vain. We could always do better. "No! This is just a dry spell. We're not going to lose to Iwa."

"Sakumo I thought you were smart enough to teach your student to shut-up whenever there could be enemies around. She could give away our position."

Great, out of all the people I wanted to see here, he wasn't one of them. Those icy blue eyes bore so much hatred as he stared Sensei down. I didn't hate a lot of people in this timeline, but Suzuki Ryozo was one of the ones I couldn't stand. Everything about him, from his cruel attitude to his backstabbing ways, just made me angry. I honestly wanted to hit the man one good time.

Sensei rolled his eyes at Ryozo as he squared his stance to confront the other man. I watched closely and marveled at the similarities between Sensei and Ryozo and me and Sasuke. Though Sasuke's betrayal was different that Ryozo's, a betrayal was still a betrayal no matter which way it was turned.

"I really don't want to deal with you right now Ryozo. My student isn't in the wrong here, she just got here. We haven't even had time to learn the orders yet, so back off. This isn't the time or the place."

Ryozo snarled, waking up some of the shinobi sleeping on the ground beside his feet, all eyes were turning to the argument happening between the two jounins. We didn't need those two to fight right now, I admired Sensei for sticking up for me, but he needed to be the calm jounin. The others around were already so downtrodden that seeing a fight between two of the leaders would steal away whatever morale that had left.

I found myself wanting to yell at the man and pound him into the ground. It was such a sudden change that I actually had to freeze in the middle of getting ready to yell. Yelling like that was something I would have done during the other timeline, when I was still an idiot. I hadn't felt the need to yell like that in years. It scared me a little. So much that I tentatively reached over and tugged on the end of Sensei's traveling cloak. He looked back and I quietly asked him to stop. He gave me a strange look before softening his stance. "This isn't the right time to do this now. Let's forget about it. I'll make sure Naru is quieter next time."

Ryozo didn't back down though, in fact his stance became even more tense and deadly. "No, let's finish this no-"

"Stop Ryozo."

Everyone turned to the new voice and I barely managed to stop my jaw from hitting the ground as I realized it was Rafu taking up for Sensei. Ryozo looked just as shocked as I was by the way his eyes flooded with confusion. Sensei on the other hand, didn't even look shocked. I could tell he was smiling broadly underneath his mask, almost like he expected something like this to happen.

"It's good to see you again Rafu."

Rafu actually smiled warmly as he looked over at me and Sensei. "It's good to see you both of you too." He looked down at me and pointed over his left shoulder. "Raido and some of the younger chunin are over there if you want to go see them."

Raido. I didn't think I was going to be able to look him in the eye. How was I going to talk to him while having his only brother's dog tags in my pocket?

"Go on Naru. I've got to head over to the command tent anyway and get our orders." He gave me a sad, knowing look before resting his hand against my shoulder. "Don't worry Naru, it's for the best." I looked up at Sensei and instantly knew what he was referring to. Raido couldn't find out about his brother. I nodded as I decided that I couldn't waste any more time before walking in the direction he pointed me in.

Genma was the first person I saw or rather heard. "Naru-chan! Over here!"

I put on my best grin and raced over.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

"Have you been to the command tent yet?" Sakumo shook his head as he turned a suddenly curious eye to Rafu's question or rather, how he asked the question. Almost like he knew something Sakumo didn't.

"No, why?"

"They're making you a commander for this campaign, overheard it last night while we were going over battle plans. I'm supposed to bring you to the command tent as soon as you get in."

Sakumo pulled down his mask and Rafu nearly laughed at the disgruntled look on the other man's face. "Why do they want me? Surely there is someone better to lead the campaign?"

Rafu shook his head. "Sakumo, you're the best for the job and you know it. Now, come on, you're needed _commander_."

Sakumo snorted at the man's attempt to give him respect. Rafu had come a long way from the person he was, but somewhere deep inside Sakumo knew it caused the man pain to respect him.

The command tent was, by far, the largest tent and located directly in the middle of camp. This was where the behind the scenes action took place. Many of Konoha's most brilliant shinobi and kunoichi spent hours in the command tent thinking up strategy and implementing plans. A lot of the plans made there were the only thing keeping Konoha afloat.

When Sakumo walked into the tent with Rafu right behind him, the entire tent went silent before greetings went up. Regardless of the fact that most of Konoha had forgiven Sakumo, there were still a select few that blamed Sakumo for the war. It was just a part of human nature, not everybody was going to be changed. Sakumo just considered himself lucky that so many other people had forgiven him, not that he regretted his decision.

Orochimaru sneered from his position at the head of a long table situated in the middle of the tent. Numerous maps and scrolls on information were scattered across the table. Sakumo found himself dying to read the latest reports from Intel.

"Well, if it isn't our commander-to-be. You're late Hatake, you told the Hokage you would be here within three days. We are now on day four."

Sakumo was slightly taken aback by the coldness in the sennin's voice, but he didn't let it show. Instead he shrugged and frowned at the man. "Sorry, we had a situation a few miles away from camp. We stumbled upon Iwa shinobi and a destroy Leaf team."

One of the shinobi from the back of the tent cursed loudly. "That must have been Yuma's team. They were scouting out the area. Any survivors?"

Sakumo shook his head and fingered the three sets of dog tags in his pocket. Common curtsey around Konoha's troops was for the shinobi that found the dead to be the ones that informed the family. "No, but Naru and I took care of the bodies and the enemy."

Orochimaru nodded before standing up and walking towards Sakumo. "I'm heading to another camp north from here so Sensei wants you to take over here. The others will fill you in, but I must warn you, the situation is dire."

Sakumo nodded as Orochimaru disappeared out the tent flap, leaving him behind to look at the remaining shinobi. "Okay, someone tell me what's going on."

One of the men stepped forward, the crest on his shirt marked him as a member of the Nara clan, but Sakumo couldn't recall his name. "Orochimaru-sama sent out three scout teams yesterday and only one returned. The other two are believed to be dead. The team tells us that the Iwa camp is getting closer to our location. Within a week their entire camp will be sitting on our doorstep."

Sakumo sighed quietly to himself as he walked over and looked at the map in the middle of the table. Everything was already marked and just waiting to be manipulated. He surveyed it long enough to discover a small patch of forest about a mile thick. "Did Orochimaru leave any plans behind?"

"No sir. Originally we were going to try an ambush, but the entire valley between here and there is covered in snow and has no other coverage besides hills."

"What about this forest here?"

A woman this time stepped forward and pointed to the map. "The villagers around here call it the Forest of Lost Souls. It would be amazing coverage, but our enemies aren't stupid. They know we would destroy them from the trees. They've already razed entire forests in an attempt to level the playing field."

"Just because they aren't stupid doesn't mean they don't make mistakes." The kunoichi blinked as Sakumo quickly sat down. "Let's start this right. Yes, we need a victory, but we need a worthwhile victory more than anything. We only have five hundred shinobi compared to their great numbers so we've got to make what little we have go a long way."

The ninja around him murmured in agreement. "What do you propose Sakumo-sama?"

Sakumo turned and grinned. "We're going to outsmart them. Lure them into a trap and attack."

* * *

As Sakumo was facing the dilemma of figuring out how to saving Konoha from yet another defeat, Naru was having her own dilemma. Ryuu's dog tags were becoming heavier and heavier in his pocket the longer she talked to Raido. She wanted to tell him so bad, but she knew she couldn't. Instead of dwelling on it, she tried to push it out of her mind and focus on her reunited friends. Both Genma and Raido hadn't changed a single bit since the last time she saw them, except for their heights of course. They were taller now and on the verge of becoming teenagers, but they still joked around with Naru. To them her age didn't matter, she was still a worthy comrade and a great friend.

"What've you been you to?"

Naru shrugged as she found a spot beside the other two around a small campfire. "Nothing much, just got back from a mission in Ame."

Raido's eyes widened in shock. "Seriously? I heard Ame was pretty much torn through, nothing there at all."

"No, it's actually a very nice place. A little depressing, but I have a feeling that all that's about to change. What about you two?"

Genma shrugged as he reached into his weapon's pouch and took out a piece of dried jerky. After offering some of Raido and Naru, who both declined, he stuffed a piece into his mouth and chewed. Raido snorted at his friend's actions as he answered Naru's question.

"Well, since Genma is busy stuffing his face, I'll go first. I've mostly been around Suna. It's hot, sandy, and just a miserable place to be."

Genma grinned as he bit off another piece of jerky. "Not to mention it's a bitch trying to keep sand out of your bedroll."

"You're right about that."

Naru laughed, finding it strangely easy to put Ryuu's death out of her mind. "Try having to breathe in water every single day. I felt like I was living underneath a lake. It rained constantly."

Raido shook his head as he pointed towards his big toe. "Well at least Ame didn't have scorpions. One got me on my big toe and I couldn't walk for an entire week." Naru and Genma both burst into a fit of laughter as Raido mockingly huffed and looked away from them. "Go ahead and laugh. Since you're finished stuffing your face, let's see what you've been up to Gen."

Genma's laughter turned to slight giggles before he finally calmed himself enough to speak. "I spent a lot of time around the border of Fire Nation. There was an attack on the Daimyo's family and the Third made sure that border was protected after that."

Naru frowned slightly. "Was anybody hurt?"

Genma let out a tired sigh and rubbed his eyes. "The second oldest daughter, Akira, was taken and her body was found a few days later. Looked like she died from pointblank range kunai strike, standard execution style, they even decapitated her. The Daimyo is pissed off and wants revenge. I guess that's what this battle is for, revenge against Iwa. Supposedly, the guy that ordered her execution will be somewhere on the battlefield."

"That's horrible."

Raido sadly shook his head. "Obviously you haven't been around long enough to hear your orders for this battle. What's horrible is the bloodbath we're walking into. No survivors, everyone dead, no prisoners of war. The Hokage has ordered 'kill on sight' for every person sporting an Iwa headband, regardless of age or sex."

"Damn."

Raido nodded his head as Genma quietly plucked dead grass from the ground beside him. "Way to ruin a mood Rai."

"Shut it Genma, we're dealing with reality here. We can't pretend it's not going to happen."

"I know, but couldn't you have waited before making everything awkward. I actually wanted to be blissfully unaware for a few more hours."

Naru placed a hand up to silence the growing tensions. "Stop both of you. Let's just talk about something else. Where is the battle taking place?"

Genma pointed vaguely around him. "No one's really sure, but it's going to be here. Our scouts found Iwa's camp and they're less than a mile from us. We attack in three days, just enough time for everyone to rendezvous here and rest before the battle."

"What about Kakashi? Have you two seen him?"

Genma shook his head. "Nope, but I know for a fact that Minato was called here, so Kakashi should be along shortly."

Naru sighed, secretly wishing they would hurry up. She hated to admit it, but she had missed him.

* * *

"How are your ribs Kakashi?"

The silver haired boy shrugged his shoulders before gasping in pain. That really wasn't the smartest thing to do in his condition. Minato chuckled as he reached over to ruffle the unruly silver hair. Kakashi immediately sidestepped the affectionate gesture and turned towards the hills that separated them from Konoha's forces. They still had another full day of travel before they made it to the camp and Minato worried for his student's health.

The traveling had been rough on Kakashi's injuries, but cool refreshment entered his body as he thought about seeing his dad and Naru once again. Unfortunately, Tsukiko's mind poisoning caused the shinobi part of Kakashi's brain to scold him. He wasn't there for a reunion, no, he was there to do his Hokage's will.

"I'm fine Sensei, I'm a shinobi and this pain doesn't bother me. Let's hurry so we can get our orders."

Blue eyes watched as Kakashi sprinted forward. Minato promised himself at that moment that he was going to lock Kakashi somewhere with Sakumo and Naru so they could straighten the boy out.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

Dad and Kakashi didn't show up that night or the next morning. I was getting a little worried, but Sensei said there was no reason to worry about them. I wished I had his confidence because the sick feeling in the pit of my stomach told me something wasn't right.

Speaking of Sensei, I rarely saw him since we walked into camp. He was spending most of his time in the command tent devising strategies with the other captains. Since he was appointed commander, he's been rather busy. So I pretty much spent my time with Raido and Genma or visiting the town. That's really all there was to do other than train.

The town was still depressing, but right underneath the surface there was something quaint about Sawa. I liked exploring the back alleys. They reminded me so much of Konoha despite the small size, also the homeless usually had interesting stories to tell and wares to sell. I didn't have a lot of money on me, but I did end up purchasing a small 'good luck' charm that doubled as a patience builder. It was a funny looking thing. From what I could tell, it was a green mushroom. The mushroom head was hollow and inside was a jumble of string with a tiny weight attacked to one end of the string. The other end of the string was attached to the top of the mushroom. The object of the exercise was to maneuver the weighted part of the string through a series of holes dotting the side of the mushroom. When all the string was threaded through, it was supposed to make a figure. I hadn't figured it out exactly, but working it was better than sitting around a campfire picking at dead grass.

"Please, stop it. Please, I won't do it again. I promise."

The hysterical voice caused me to instantly snap back from my thoughts. I was close to camp, but still too far away to yell for help if I needed it. Doubted I would, but Sensei made me promise that I wouldn't throw myself into the middle of something I had no business messing with, especially if Ryozo was involved. Sensei knew that Ryozo was just looking for a reason to report me for insubordination, not that he'd get very far, but insubordination reports never looked good on a record during promotions.

I followed the hysterical voice and winced as the sobs became even louder and more frantic. I also couldn't help but notice that many of the people that usually sat out around the allies where gone. Almost like they knew better than to interfere.

"No, no, don't touch me. Please."

I walked into the alley where the sounds where coming from and couldn't believe my eyes. Three Konoha shinobi were practically molesting a young woman less than two feet from the main road. One turned to look at me and I wasn't surprised to see it was Ryozo.

"What are you three doing to her?"

Ryozo laughed before grabbing the woman's arm and pulling her back towards him as she tried to escape.

"She stole bread from camp early this morning and I've decided to make her pay for it."

I looked at the woman and saw the fear on her face and the sunken in stomach. She looked like she hadn't eaten in days. Her black hair was horribly dirty and her tears left muddy splotches along her face.

"Surely, you can forgive her? Why did she steal the bread?"

The woman sobbed loudly. "I had to feed my baby. He's a year old and dying from starvation. You shinobi come into our towns, destroy our crops, take our food, and then leave us to rot. I refuse to stand by and watch my baby die."

Ryozo snorted as he backhanded the woman. "Whore, no one told you to speak. I'll put that mouth to good use in a few minutes if you don't watch it."

That caused the woman to sob and fight harder.

My blood boiled at his words. I didn't let my anger get the better of me, though, and simply reached into one of my pockets for a few of the coins there. "Here Ryozo, I'll pay for the bread, just let her go. She's terrified and obviously has a baby to go home to."

He snarled before grabbing the woman's long hair and yanking her head back. She trembled violently as he brought his lips down to her neck and kissed it in a mock show of affection. "No Naru, she's going to repay her debt for the bread on her back."

The fear boiling up inside the woman's eyes was too much for me to bear. I knew Sensei said to let Ryozo have his way, but even he couldn't have imagined the man would sink this low. I looked towards the two other male shinobi and saw they too were enjoying the sight before them. One even boldly snuck his hand underneath the frayed smock the woman was wearing. I couldn't tell where his hand was, but from the mortified look on the woman's face I could tell that it wasn't a place he should touch in public.

I squared my jaw and crossed my arms across my chest. "Ryozo, let her go."

Anger washed over Ryozo's face as he pushed the woman into the other men's awaiting arms. I watched as one instantly pushed her against the wall and attacked her neck. The black hearted man walking towards me menacingly growled as he stopped just a few inches in front of me.

"I'm sorry, _Chunin_ , what did you just _order_ me to do?"

Sensei's voice was ringing loudly in my ear and I could plainly hear the words 'insubordination' ringing as clear as a bell. I rolled my eyes and decided in that moment that I didn't give a damn about insubordination. Never have and possibly never will.

"Maybe you didn't hear me clearly, _Jounin_ , but I said let her go."

He pulled back his hand and I knew he was going to slap me. I quickly crouched lower towards the ground, ready to pounce in his direction, when an oh-so familiar voice broke through the tension.

"Hmm, look Sensei, no matter where Naru goes she always manages to find herself in some form of trouble."

I blinked as Ryozo froze instantly. My eyes were unbelieving and joyful as I looked around his broad form to see my friend, my scarecrow, standing at the opening of the alley. Only after I saw him did I notice Dad standing there staring almost lazily at Ryozo's still upraised hand.

"I do believe you're right Kakashi, though, I do have to wonder what the Hokage would say about this. Sexual assault and abuse of rank is highly frowned upon in Konoha."

When Dad walked forward, the two shinobi that were previously groping the woman disappeared in twin puffs of smoke. Instant relief hit the woman as she slid down the dingy wall and clutched at her frantically beating heart. Ryozo dropped his hand and sneered in my direction.

"She didn't listen to a direct order from her commanding officer. She was in the wrong and I have full authority to punish her."

It was Kakashi this time that walked over, actually walking wasn't the right word for what he did. He glided over to Ryozo. For just a few seconds, I could see the six-foot tall man he used to be and could feel the stealth oozing off of him. Ryozo seemed unnerved by Kakashi as he walked over and innocently shook his head.

"We've been here for a while and you never gave her an order."

Ryozo snarled, but stopped when Dad placed a heavy hand on his shoulder. "Go back to camp Ryozo and inform them we're back. We'll be there shortly."

Luckily Ryozo did what Dad said, leaving Dad time to walk over and check on the still dazed young woman. Leaving Kakashi and I alone to look each other over and have our big reunion. I waited patiently for him to make a move towards me, but the dead look in his eyes only swept over me once before returning back to their blank slates.

"Kakashi?"

"Hmm?"

My eyebrows knitted together in confusion as he rigidly stood in front of me.

"Don't you want to say something or maybe do something?"

Something passed over Kakashi's eyes and from the slight movement beneath his mask I could tell that his mouth opened before closing. All the muscles in his body tightened before relaxing as he answered.

"Not really."

I raised an eyebrow at him. "Not really? Do you realize that we haven't seen each other in almost an entire year?"

Once more Kakashi looked like he wanted to say something, but instead he stood still.

"It's good to see you again?"

I resisted the urge to pound him into the ground. What he said wasn't even a statement, it was a question. A stupid question. I swallowed down my outrage and anger and nodded my head.

"Yeah, I thought so too." I turned to Dad and put on my best fake smile. "I'll see you guys in camp. I've got some things to do."

With those words said, I ran from the alley, leaving behind a very disappointing reunion.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

"Kakashi."

"Don't Sensei, just don't. I'm not in the mood right now." Honestly I wasn't. It was so hard to try and be emotionless around Naru. I had gotten too used to her and her ways. I dreaded talking to her because obviously I wasn't doing something right. It almost made me wish I never would have met Tsukiko and her training methods.

"Fine Kakashi, but you're going to have to stop this eventually."

I didn't reply because I didn't have a comeback. This was my personality now, why couldn't Sensei understand that?

"Let's just go Sensei. I want to see about getting a medic-nin to check out my ribs."

"Don't you want to see your father first?"

Dad. I missed him a lot. Almost as much as I missed Naru, but I couldn't handle seeing him right now. I knew our reunion would probably go just about as smooth as the one Naru and I had if I saw him now.

"No. Injuries first."

Sensei looked disappointed. It was a look I was getting used to seeing on his face, and with that came the shame of knowing he was disappointed.

"Whatever you say Kakashi."

I hated the things I did sometimes.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Naru returned to camp and informed Sakumo that Kakashi and Minato was back. The older silver haired man was overjoyed to hear his son was just a few minutes away from him, but the tone of Naru's voice as she told him the news worried him. She wasn't as excited as he would have expected her to be. Something was obviously going on and he was going to get to the bottom of it.

While Sakumo tried to figure out what was going on between Kakashi and Naru, Minato was getting his head chewed off by one of the medics for allowing Kakashi to run all the way from Iwa with three broken ribs.

"What if one of them would have pierced his right lung? The organ would have collapsed and he would have died! How could you have been so careless Minato?"

Kakashi sat up and held out a hand to silence the medic. "We had our orders and we followed them here. Sensei did nothing wrong."

"Orders aren't everything, especially when they pertain to your health, Kakashi-kun."

Kakashi leaned back and sighed. "I'm fine. Let's just get on with the healing so we can get our next orders."

The medic pursed his lips together before hastily moving to Kakashi's side to mend the broken ribs. Once he was done, Kakashi hopped off the bed and stretched along his right side.

"Just make sure you don't overdo it."

"Gotcha."

Kakashi walked out with Minato trailing behind him. The blond haired man didn't know if he liked this attitude his student had. It wasn't endearing, nor was it cute. All it did was make the older man want to hold the child underneath the nearest water source until that sneer left his voice. Gods, he wished he would have killed Tsukiko when he had the chance because she was the reason his 'Kashi was acting this way. Minato sighed deeply but allowed the boy to lead him through the camp.

The younger silver haired male walked until he saw the unmistakable silver spikes of his father's hair. That warm feeling bubbled up in his chest and he found himself having to lock his knees in an effort to keep himself from running into the man's arms. He squashed it down with Tsukiko's voice hissing in his ear and simply walked over to sit beside the man.

Sakumo was startled to say the least when Kakashi randomly appeared out of nowhere with Minato trailing behind him. Sakumo had sensed him the exact moment his only son arrived in the camp, but he expected more of a 'hello' than what he received. One look into Minato's eyes, though, and Sakumo suddenly realized that he wasn't about to get the emotional reunion he wanted. Sakumo was upset and disappointed whenever Kakashi made no move to hug him, but simply sat beside him like a lump on a log.

Ronin was the only one sitting at the fire and his eyebrows knitted together in confusion as he stared at Kakashi. Taking one look at Sakumo and seeing the silent request, Ronin quickly made himself scarce.

Kakashi looked down at the ground before finally clearing his throat and speaking. "I'm back."

Sakumo hummed in response and lazily toed one of the stalks of grass burning in the fire. "I know. Want to explain to me what happened with Naru?"

"Nothing that I know of. I've only been here a grand total of five minutes."

The elder of the two could barely sense the underlying smugness in his son's words. His entire body tensed at the foreign blatant disrespect. Sakumo leaned over and narrowed his eyes at his son, who was doing his best to meet said eyes without flinching.

"What happened to you?"

Kakashi's eyes fell to the ground as he abruptly stood up and walked away from Sakumo's side. As he walked away, Sakumo couldn't help but notice that every eye was on his precocious son and watching his every move. Sakumo hadn't noticed it before, because his back was turned, but Kakashi walked like an assassin. He moved through the air like pure silk. Sakumo barely contained his growl as he turned to Minato.

"What the hell did you let them do to him?"

Minato had the decency to step back before finding his spine and glaring at his friend. "Sakumo, you know damn well I wouldn't let anybody hurt Kakashi in any way. He's too much like my own child for me to ever let someone hurt him."

Sakumo eased up, but the obvious anger and worry was still there on the surface. "Minato, what happened to him?"

The blond haired man sighed deeply as he sat down on the ground and beckoned Sakumo to sit with him.

"He trained as an assassin under a female ANBU codenamed Tsukiko." Minato swallowed before clearing his throat. "I'll admit that some of the things she taught him where inappropriate, but he had to learn."

"Like what Minato?"

"I can't go into too much detail because the mission is classified, but she did train him in a few areas of seduction."

Minato stopped because he knew that Sakumo was going to need to take a few minutes to himself to let those words sink in.

"Seduction? My boy was trained in seduction?"

"Nothing huge, just a few kissing tricks and minor foreplay."

Sakumo practically whimpered at the last word. " _Foreplay_?"

Minato quickly shushed his friend and bit down his own thoughts about the training in order to placate Sakumo. He wouldn't put it past the man to track down Tsukiko and kill her. "Calm down Sakumo, it's not like she taught him out to have sex. She just taught him how to do stuff like hold hands and woo a girl. Yes, he had to seduce the target's daughter, but I made sure he was okay afterwards."

Sakumo calmed down a little bit, but there was still some anger towards this mysterious ANBU simmering on the surface. "It's just not fair Minato. All of that stuff is supposed to have on nature's time. He should be sharing quick kisses with some other girl, not kissing targets."

"I'm sorry friend, I tried to protect him, but the Hokage wanted the training done."

Sakumo let out a mournful sigh before nodding his head. "I understand. I'm going to talk to Kakashi tonight and see if I can get to the root of his current problem. He's just not the same right now."

"Good. I wanted to catch up with Naru anyway. So, how did she do?"

Sakumo chuckled slightly. "Your daughter never fails at anything she does because she puts her all into it. She may not get it right the first time, but she's not going to give up."

Minato grinned proudly before chuckling. "She was so upset earlier that she didn't even say 'hi' to me. I'm glad to hear that she did fine on her mission."

"She did more than fine. I'll be really surprised if she doesn't surpass us all. She's got the will and determination to do it, plus her amazing talent to endear people to her."

"So, we're both in agreement that her awesomeness comes from my side of the family."

Sakumo laughed and felt the tension of the day drain away as easy as it came. "Whatever helps you sleep at night. Oh, have you gone and gotten your orders yet?"

Minato shook his head, ignoring his friend's sarcastic comment. "Nope, going right now."

"Well, I'll give them to you then. You've got to help me with those two, they're going to be placed back on a team together and we've got to make sure their teamwork is still as good as it once was. I refuse to send them into battle without being at their best."

Minato smiled as he realized Sakumo was the commander. The blond haired man clapped Sakumo on the shoulder in an attempt to get him up. "Come on then Sakumo, we've got only a few more hours of daylight left and if we want to get everything done we've got to go now."

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

Well, to put this nicely, our first teamwork exercise was a complete disaster. Words don't even describe how disastrous the entire thing turned out to be.

Sensei gave us the watered-down and twisted version of the bell test. He summoned two of his wolves, gave a scroll to each one and ordered us to find them. We spent the next hour running around like a couple of chickens with our heads cut off. Our communication sucked, our vibes were all off, and I just couldn't feel Kakashi beside me anymore. There was a wall between us, one that I felt like I couldn't break because he wasn't going to let me break it. We just didn't move together like we used to.

Sakumo-sensei finally took pity on us and canceled the exercise.

"Let's try this again. This time, I'm tying you two together."

Kakashi huffed beside me. "I don't see how that's going to change the fact that we're just too different for this to work."

Sakumo-sensei gave Kakashi a hard look before clucking his tongue in disapproval. "Maybe if you'd start trying then it would work."

Kakashi sighed and allowed Sensei to tie us together at the wrist. Five minutes later, we were tugging each other through shrubs and trees in an attempt to find the ninken.

"Kakashi, stop."

He stopped and turned back to me. "What?"

"What's wrong with us?"

"Nothing is wrong with us Naru. Stop slowing me down and start looking for the damn wolves."

I don't know why, but I'm pretty sure I channeled a lot of my frustration into rage at that point. I think it might have been the smug tone Kakashi used to say 'me', almost like I was the sole reason that we weren't doing good together.

I snapped and lunged forward just as I pulled the rope connecting us back. The result was me punching Kakashi in the stomach, Kakashi kicking my legs out from under me, and both of us wrestling on the freezing ground. We couldn't get in very good punches, but the one that hit were effective. I finally managed to roll myself on top of him and dug my knees into the fleshy part of his thighs.

"What is wrong with you?"

He growled in annoyance before whimpering slightly as I increased the pressure on my knees. I knew it was a painful position, but I didn't deserve such coldness from him. He stopped struggling and looked up at me with the most exhausted expression.

"Let me up Naru, my thighs are killing me." I didn't want to, but I moved off of him and sat beside him. He sat up and tiredly ran a hand across his eyes before scooting closer to me. "I'm what's wrong with us Naru and it's eating me up inside."

He looked so alone and young when he said that, making me doubt the cold exterior he showed earlier. I slowly reached over and grasped his hand. Surprisingly enough, he squeezed back.

"No Kakashi, we've just been apart for too long. We'll get it back. I guess I overreacted. I'm sorry"

He didn't say anything for a long time, but the next words he spoke took my breath away. "No, it's my fault. I've been acting so cold to everybody and I deserved that. I deserve a lot more than that in fact. Do you know I didn't even hug my dad after seeing him for the first time in a year? I didn't even give you a proper hello."

"Why are you acting this way? You're acting just like a certain teammate of mine from the future."

I honestly didn't mean for that to come out like that and I knew the statement stung. Seeing Kakashi visibly flinch didn't make me feel any better about the situation. It only made me feel worse.

"My teacher told me to bury my emotions. _Emotionless_. It's a whole lot harder this time around, though."

"Oh, Kakashi, my stupid, stupid, Kakashi. Did that emotionless shit work the first time?"

Kakashi's head snapped up instantly, his eyes were wide with memories. Slowly he came down from the emotional high and shrugged. "It did in a lot of cases Naru. You have to understand that shinobi can't let their emotions cloud their judgment."

I nodded my head. "You've also got to understand that shinobi can't kill their emotions or they become nothing more than tools. I didn't work so hard as a six-year-old to get you to slide down that damn slide for all of it to be snatched from me. You've got to learn balance, Scarecrow, balance."

Kakashi was quiet for the rest of the exercise, simply letting me pull him along while we searched for the ninken. We never did find them and eventually were called back by Sensei's disappointed voice. Even Dad looked disappointed whenever we finally made it back to their sides.

"Okay, we'll try this again tomorrow, but both of you have to understand that time is running out. Whatever is wedging itself between you two you both need to get rid of it. We have three days before we start our attack. Let's see some improvement tomorrow."

I walked back with Dad to his tent while Kakashi walked with Sensei to his. Something had to change or we were going to get killed on the battlefield.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I could practically smell the disappointment from Dad.

We walked back to his tent and prepared for bed without much talking, it wasn't until I was sitting there nervously fiddling with my bedroll that Dad even spoke.

"Kakashi?"

"Yeah?"

"What's wrong son?"

I remained silent because I didn't know how to answer his question. How do you tell someone that you're pushing your emotions away so you have to forget that you love them?

Dad sighed before sitting in front of me and gripping my chin to force me to look up at him. "We've got to talk so we can work through this."

"There's nothing to work through."

Dad seemed taken back with my answer, but didn't say anything at first. After a series of deep breaths and quick inhales, he spoke again.

"What did Tsukiko do to you?"

"She taught me to be an assassin."

Dad shook his head sadly. "No, she taught you a few more things. Things that are messing with your head. Just talk to me Kakashi, I'm here for you."

I wanted so badly to fall into his arms and tell him everything, but I didn't. I straightened my back, squared my jaw, and pushed down all those rotten emotions. "She taught me to be an assassin, nothing more, nothing less. Now, if you don't mind, I'm going to sleep."

For a while there in the darkness of our tent, Dad was silent. I thought he was asleep until he wrapped an arm around me and rolled me over to look at him. "She taught you seduction and how to kill people with as much stealth as humanly possible. Something horrible happened to you that you refuse to talk about. I know Ka-chan, because I can see it in your eyes. What happened?"

I tried to look away from him, but every time I moved my head he would move it right back. I couldn't lie to him. Hell, I couldn't even stand to not talk to him. I finally resigned myself to my fate and told him everything.

"She taught me my flaws and beat me for them. If I want to be the shinobi I strive to be, I need to squash down all of my emotions because emotions only get people killed. For an entire half-year I played a lovesick puppy for a young girl. Lied to her, kissed her, held her hand, and finally killed her father, resulting in her own death. I killed random people in the middle of the night just for practice. I killed a good man and got his innocent daughter killed too."

Dad moved away from me and I instantly regretted everything I told him. For one thing, the information was classified, so he really didn't need to hear it. I rolled back over and tried to will my body to sleep. If I could fall asleep before he finally thought of how to voice his disgust then I wouldn't have to hear it. The only problem with that was the fact that my heart was beating too rapidly in my ears for me to fall asleep.

"Kakashi, come here."

Dammit. Why was sleep being so illusive tonight? I had two options. I could ignore him or I could go to him. I decided to go with the second option because the first was too disrespectful. I slowly made my way out of my bedroll and went to his side.

I was prepared for just about anything. I was prepared to see some weariness and disgust on his face, but what I wasn't prepared for was for him to instantly pull me into a hug. He held me so tightly that I had no other option but to hug him back. For just a few moments, I felt like I did before Tsukiko's training. I felt warm and happy.

"She taught you that your emotions are flaws? She's crazy, crazy for saying those things and crazy for trying to get you to push those down. Emotions are a part of being human Kakashi. _Human_. If you lose those then you're nothing better than a weapon. I'm not letting you become an emotionless weapon."

He stopped and loosened his grip before pulling me back and burying his face into the top of my hair. His next words were muffled, but I could hear them all they same.

"'Kashi, I'm not going to lie to you. Being an assassin means you'll have to kill good people and innocent people will die along with them, but you can't let your feelings bottle up inside of you. It's not healthy and always messy when everything finally explodes. I'm here for you, please, give me a chance to help."

I nodded against his shoulder and felt his breathing shudder slightly.

"Look at me and Minato, we haven't squashed down our emotions. Are we any less shinobi because of that?"

"No."

"Exactly! Minato and I are elite shinobi, but we still have our emotions. Would you have liked to have grown up without ever being hugged or told that you were loved? Can you imagine how dark of a childhood and family life that would have been?"

I shook my head as I pulled away from him, deep inside I could remember what it was like to be alone. I remembered what the dark side of the shinobi world felt like. I remembered all too well what happened the last time I tossed away my emotions and followed the rules like an obedient dog. I couldn't let that happen again.

"Kakashi, son, what you've got to learn is how to balance your personalities. When I'm at home, I'm Sakumo, but when I'm on the battlefield, I'm the White Fang. You can't live a happy life by being an emotionless shinobi on both fronts. Hell, you're not mature enough to even attempt that yet."

"Hey! I'm mature."

Dad chuckled as he reached over to ruffle my hair. "Now there, that's the boy I remember. Sorry kiddo, but your body hasn't matured yet. With all those hormones getting ready to go crazy you couldn't possibly begin to learn to control yourself like _Tsukiko_ wanted you to."

I couldn't help but grin as I noticed how he spat out her name in disgust. I knew what he said was true, but at the same time I knew what Tsukiko said was true too. Maybe Naru was right, the entirely emotionless personality didn't work so well last time. Perhaps this time I could try something different and maybe, just maybe, it would work.

"The only problem with that is that we're constantly on one big mission. We're in the middle of a war. Home is hundreds of miles away and yet you still want me to have those emotions."

Once more Dad chuckled at me. "Son, surely I've taught you that home is wherever your family is and right now, your family is right here. This is home, so stop being a little pain in the ass."

I laughed. I couldn't believe I had been stupid enough to fully believe Tsukiko. Why wasn't I learning from my mistakes in the other timeline? Completing the mission was important, but teammates were even more important. It was at that moment that a whisper of a saying came from the darkest corner of my mind. It was something very similar to what I was thinking, but different. The saying was right on the tip of my tongue, but refused to form. Finally, I gave up trying to remember it.

I turned to dad and looked down at the bedroll. "Dad."

"Hmm?"

"I'm sorry I was such a jerk earlier."

He chuckled before patting my head. "That's okay Ka-chan, I expected it. You spent nearly an entire year with Minato and I expected to have to adjust your attitude afterwards. Just remember, next time don't bottle it all up. Let me know what's happening in the beginning and it'll save us a whole lot of trouble."

"Okay." Dad smiled once more before getting ready to go to sleep. I stopped him though. "Hey Dad?"

"Yeah?"

"Can we redo our reunion?" Dad chuckled and enthusiastically nodded his head. I didn't hesitate this time around. I crossed the small space and tightly hugged him. He hugged back just as tightly before warmly chuckling in my ear.

"Welcome home Kakashi."

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I pouted at Dad from across the tent. "We didn't get our joyous reunion."

"Neither did Sakumo and Kakashi."

"Well that was Kakashi's fault."

"Naru!"

I sighed and looked away. "It's the truth. I'm not saying it to be mean, but it's the truth. He's too damn stubborn for his own good."

"Language Naru."

I grinned at him. "This is the first time we get to see each other in ten months and all you can do is admonish me for cursing? Did you not miss me enough?"

I didn't even realize he had moved until he was pulling me into a bone crushing hug and squeezing the life out of me. "I missed you so much."

I grinned as I hugged him back. "I missed you too Dad."

He reluctantly released me before instantly starting off into interrogating me about my time with Sensei and Jiraiya.

"Did you have fun? Where you safe? Was Jiraiya mean to you? Do I need to go kick his butt? They didn't leave you with any questionable people did they? Did you learn the Rasengan?"

I laughed as I tried to stop his questioning. "Calm down! I can't even remember what questions you asked! Yes, I had fun. No, Jiraiya wasn't mean, so please don't kick his butt. Yes, I learned the Rasengan."

He gave me a pointed look.

"What?"

"The questionable people?"

I thought back over my teachers and the various people I had met during the past year. Yeah, I think it would be better if I ignored that question for now.

"Oh look at the time! I didn't realize it was that late! Well, best be going to bed now."

As I scrambled over to my bedroll, Dad caught me by the waist and mercilessly attacked the ticklish spot underneath my arms.

"Okay! Okay! I'll talk!"

Dad looked pleased with himself as he dropped me to the floor. "Let's just hope you never get captured by shinobi that specialize in tickle torture."

"Ha-ha. Very funny Dad."

"Now, answer the question."

I sighed and pouted at him. "Dad! Seriously, don't worry about it. I'm safe and sound now, so can we just sleep?"

He raised an eyebrow before rolling his eyes and settling into his bedroll. "You're avoiding the question, but I'll let it slide for now. Just remember, I have ways of making you talk."

Did he think that scared me?

"Sure, Dad, whatever you say."

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Once more Naru and Kakashi found themselves out in a desolate snow covered field trying to patch up their rusty teamwork skills. They were getting better, but still lacked in quite a few areas. Sakumo was getting worried. He needed to have them battle ready in less than two days. It gave him a headache to think how far they had fallen away from each other and made him wish the Hokage would have never separated them. At the rate they were going, nothing short of a miracle would get them ready. Sakumo just hoped Naru could pull out a miracle like she did before.

"Okay you two. We're going to break for now. Get ready to try again in an hour."

Twin voices chorused 'yes' before settling back into silence. The silence surrounding the two wasn't a thick silence or uncomfortable one, but it wasn't natural for the two chunin. Before their training, silence simply didn't exist around Kakashi and Naru. One was always chattering or teasing the other. It unnerved Naru. She wasn't about to lose the close friendship she valued so highly.

The blonde haired imp looked over at Kakashi's reclining form and quickly formulated a plan, all the while thanking her Dad for inspiring her attack. Crouching low in the grass, with her hands fisting clumps of snow, Naru pounced on Kakashi. It must have taken him by surprise because he didn't move for an entire second giving Naru the perfect opportunity to find the ticklish spot along his ribs with her freezing hands. Kakashi's body twitched violently underneath her as she relentlessly allowed her fingers to dance up and down his side.

For a while, no sounds came from Kakashi's mouth and Naru found herself slowing down in shame and frustration. Then, the flood gates opened and the sound of light laughter echoed around them. Naru soon found her own laughter echoing right back and joining in with Kakashi's to orchestrate the sweetest symphony her ears had ever heard. A sound she had missed so much.

Unfortunately, as she was becoming lost in her happiness, Kakashi gained the upper hand and switched their positions. As Naru's back collided with the wet, snowy grass, Kakashi's own fingers sprung into action, paying her back for her previous attack. There in the middle of a field of dying grass, a beautiful thing happened. The final string holding back Kakashi's ill fitted and self-made personality snapped, allowing the old Kakashi to fall right back into place.

Naru could tell something was different about her friend, on top of the old was something newer, something wiser and something all the more deadly. She wasn't going to fool herself; she knew Kakashi's past year hadn't been like hers. She knew his training had been so much more personal and deadly. She could easily remember him talking about the loneliness of being an assassin, but she knew that he wasn't going to be alone this time around. He had family to confide in and she wasn't about to let him throw that away. She needed to get him to see the good thing he had in front of him.

After a few minutes, both exhausted and clutching at unused muscles, they soon found themselves lying side-by-side watching the grayish clouds floating overhead.

"Snow clouds."

Naru blinked at the sudden statement from her friend. A part of her wondered if maybe all the laughing he did caused a shortage of oxygen to his brain. She knew she should have tried a more subtle approach, but subtle was so boring.

"What?"

Kakashi chuckled and pointed towards the blobs of gray in the sky.

"Those are snow clouds. You know, where the snow comes from?"

"Oh. Hey now, don't be a wisecrack." They were silent for a few more minutes before Naru turned over and looked at Kakashi. "Hey Scarecrow?"

"Hmm?"

Naru looked down at the snow they were laying on and resisted the urge to shiver. They were going to catch a cold if they continued laying there.

"What went on during your mission?" Kakashi closed his eyes and took a ragged breath, as if the memory hurt him. Naru quickly retracted her question. "If it hurts too much then I don't have to know. I just wanted to help you."

"No, it's fine. I want to talk about it."

Naru blinked in surprise as Kakashi took a deep breath and turned to her. She couldn't help but to question him about it. She could tell just from his attitude that it hadn't been a very pleasant mission.

"My target was a good man, the kind who adopted little kids and handed out free food to the homeless. It ate me up every single day knowing that I would have to kill him."

Blue eyes filled with emotion as a small hand reached over to gently squeeze his forearm, trying to push as much comfort into the gesture as she could.

"He had a daughter and I used his daughter's emotions in order to get close to him so I could kill him. I led her on for an entire year and when it came time for the assassination attempt it went wrong and she ended up dead."

Naru smiled sadly as she moved her hand down to grasp Kakashi's hand.

"I'm so sorry. Did you like her?"

The blonde haired girl didn't know why, but she could feel her chest tightening in fear over hearing Kakashi's answer. A part of her really wanted to hear a no.

"No, but I did her wrong Naru. I took her first kiss and lied to her. Bad part about it was that she died knowing her first love murdered her father."

That part of Naru selfishly rejoiced before concern for her friend squashed the celebration. She put on her best winning smile before insisting Kakashi did everything humanly possible for the mission's success.

"You did the best you could."

Kakashi laughed humorlessly as he tore down his mask and deeply breathed in the wintery scents around them.

"Ya think so? I'm pretty sure kissing her was a little too personal for my taste. Sensei was worried I would never kiss again." Naru erupted into laughter as she imagined the conversation between Kakashi and her Dad. She could see Kakashi's entire face turning as red as a tomato. "Don't laugh! He even went into detail about how kissing was an innocent act and I should never get my work and my relationships confused. He didn't want me scarred from kissing."

Naru snorted loudly as she laughed harder. Kakashi wasn't amused at her and gently punched her in the arm.

"Okay, okay, okay, I'm calming down! I promise! So were you?"

"Were I what?"

Naru rolled her eyes and propped her head against her hand. "Scarred from kissing?"

Kakashi blinked in shock before shrugging. "I don't know. She was the only girl I've ever kissed."

"Oh. Well then, let's see."

Then with the careless innocence of a child, Naru leaned forward and pressed her lips against Kakashi's own. The innocent, meaningless, sweet kiss didn't last more than a few seconds before Naru pulled back and shrugged. "Seems like you're okay to me, Scarecrow."

Kakashi tried to ignore the slightly tingly feeling left behind on his lips as he rolled his eyes at the girl.

"You're such an _idiot_."

Naru quirked an eyebrow at Kakashi before grinning evilly. Her own thoughts of the spontaneous kiss were mostly clouded with disbelieving sputters and the faint sound of one annoying fur ball giggling perversely in the background.

" _Baby Fang_ , you've just landed yourself into big trouble."

"What are you going to do? Tickle me to death?"

"Asshole."

"You say something Naru?"

A few growls and concealed yelps later, Sakumo and Minato walked onto a scene they couldn't have been happier to see, Kakashi and Naru actually getting along.

"Oh dammit! That was my shin Naru!"

"You should have moved it!"

Well, they were getting along just about as well as before.

* * *

Heavy, labored breaths turned into thick fog on his glasses as a blacked haired shinobi half-limped half-ran towards Konoha's camp. The only thing on his mind was making it back in time to warn his fellow comrades. Iwa was closer than they originally believed. In fact, a squadron was following behind him trying to impede his self-appointed task.

The man turned long enough to look at his kunoichi partner trying to hold together the bleeding gash along her stomach. If she moved her arm just the right way, he could see pink entrails spilling from the gaping wound. He could tell from the pale grimace across her face that she wasn't going to last long. Her body was already becoming numb to the pain and eventually she would die.

The woman suddenly noticed the pity in his eyes and snarled viciously. "Don't pity me. Look, both of us aren't going to make it to camp. I'm the weak link here, I'll hold them off, just go."

"Wait, there has to be something else."

"There is nothing else! Go! Now!"

The man didn't stop his strange limping run as the kunoichi stopped and twirled around to face their pursuers. He did watch, though, as she pulled together her chakra into her body tightly for one final jutsu. It was a standard kamikaze jutsu that would end her life and hopefully take out the others, saving the black haired man and the unsuspecting Konoha shinobi in camp.

When the jutsu went off, it was the most beautiful thing the glasses wearing man had ever seen. Her blue chakra illuminated the entire area, glowing against the white snow, before exploding with enough force to shake his frame. He could tell from the screams that her jutsu had hit its mark, but he didn't slow down. He had to get to camp or everything would be in vain.

A few minutes later he reached the edge of Sawa. His body was screaming at him to stop, but his instincts told him the enemy wasn't too far behind. A small part of him scolded his foolishness for leading the enemy to their camp, but it couldn't be helped. He was only minutes away from camp when three kunai stuck deep into his back, causing him to collapse to the ground.

The villagers that were outside quickly made themselves scarce. Only a young woman quietly walked over and gently touched the tensed shoulders.

"Go." The shinobi on the ground commanded through clenched teeth. "They'll only hurt you for helping."

She looked back towards the direction the kunai came from and frowned.

"Normally, I wouldn't help, but a group of Konoha shinobi stood up for me. I'm repaying the favor. Lean on me and I'll help you get there."

She helped him up and supported some of his weight before taking the first tentative steps towards Konoha's camp. By the fifth step, the man leaning against her had gone deadly silent.

"Are you okay?"

He grunted and nodded. "Hurts like a bitch." She could see him blush slightly before grinning. "Sorry about the language."

Even with the seriousness of the situation, she grinned back. "It's okay. My ears aren't as innocent as others. We're almost there. I can see Konoha shinobi."

The shinobi on her arm didn't reply back, only scooted forward a little and steadied himself. The woman looked worriedly at him before shouting to get the attention of the shinobi on the edge of camp. The immediately came running.

"What happened Daiki?"

The black haired shinobi, now known as Daiki, shrugged despite the pain in his shoulders. "Intel was wrong. They're closer and closing in. We've got to attack now."

Just as he said 'now', a shower of senbon fell upon the group. Thin metal pins ripped through internal organs and flesh as outraged shouts went up around the camp. When the attack stopped, Daiki stood protectively over the slumped over form of his female helper. With tears in her eyes and reached over to touch one of the needles sticking through his body, causing him to groan in pain.

"Why?"

"I'm sup-supposed to p-p-pr-protect civilians." He coughed up blood, flecks of it splattered across the muddy face of the young woman. "You helped me, I help you."

Daiki's eyes closed one last time and he fell backwards just as another shinobi pulled the young woman away from the bodies of the shinobi hit.

Four other shinobi raced towards where the senbon came from, weapons drawn and jutsu firing.

"Someone go get Sakumo!"

* * *

Less than an hour after the attack, Sakumo had troops marching to meet Iwa. All of Konoha's camp was packed up and out of Sawa within the next two hours. Five hours after the attack, Konoha troops secretly watched from the Forest of Lost Souls as one thousand Iwa troops marched over muddy hilltops. The white snow stained an ugly black from the dirty feet trailing across them.

Minato watched with a stern look across his normally smiling face. His hands were planted on Kakashi and Naru's shoulders like heavy iron weights holding them onto the ground. Naru actually squirmed underneath the strength in his hold. She knew her father was powerful, but never before had she been this close to feeling his prowess. Kakashi stood still. His mind already running in shinobi mode and mapping out several quick battle plans just in case he needed them, he would rather be safe and alive than dead and sorry.

Sakumo watched from a tree with the carefully laid out battle plans whirling around in his mind. Of course, seeing the massive enemy so close made him doubt everything they'd planned out. He closed his eyes and sighed deeply before jumping from the tree and landing beside Minato and the kids.

Everyone turned to look at Sakumo with wide, trusting eyes. Many gasped in awe as the man removed his tanto, and stepped out from the forest. Their orders were simple, attack when Iwa was in the valley between the hills and kill as many as they could. Then, drive the remaining shinobi into the forest where several deadly traps were set up with the help of Naru and several other demolition experts. If all of that failed, then release Orochimaru's newest invention.

His newest invention was a new berserker gas that attacked the receptors in the brain, causing those infected to go crazy with rage and confusion. They stopped being able to distinguish between friend and enemy, resulting in frantic attacks before the gas finally killed off all processes to the brain, resulting in death. It was a very potent and very powerful weapon, but it had to be used as a last resort. Each shinobi was given a vial of the gas and luckily Konoha's side already had the antidote, so no worries there if someone accidentally broke their vial.

"Long range fighters, move out."

Several shinobi appeared in front of the forest, some carrying bows others carrying scrolls and readying kunai. Sakumo gave the signal and they marched forward with straight backs and thudding hearts.

"Midrange and short-range fighters, get ready."

The attack had to be handled delicately, part ambush, part full on battle, part devious trickery, but all dangerous and all deadly. Sakumo knew his long range fighters would be the ones that set the bar as how the rest of the battle would go. He could already tell that this battle was shaping up to be a difficult one, nothing like the weeks long sieges in the trenches. Nothing like the quick scrimmages across Ame. This battle would be unlike any other and Konoha had to pull out a victory.

Sakumo turned his head and stared at the wide-eyed look on Naru's face. He gave her a small smile before giving his next orders.

"Special Ops, take your places."

Those in special ops quickly raced through the forest to their designated positions. They were the ones handling the deadly traps. Their jobs were just as dangerous as the other ones because they had to quickly reset traps and clear bodies in order to trap their victims. It was a job that required speed and precision. Sakumo hoped they knew how to do both effectively.

Naru and Kakashi were going with the short range fighters. He hated sending them out there without him, but Minato would be there until Sakumo finished giving out orders. Then he too would join the fray.

* * *

Genma looked over at the Iwa shinobi below them. His fingers twitched around the kunai he had in both of his hands. His heart was beating loudly in his ears and he swore he could feel the pulse of the shinobi beside him through the ground. Normally he would have been with the midrange fighters, but his aim was needed. Right now, he was needed here.

The leader of the long range fighters was an Uchiha, one that Genma had never seen before. His black hair stuck to his sweaty forehead as he raised his arm and swiftly brought it down, signaling the start of the battle. Unfortunately, as soon as his arm fell down, shuriken flew from the shinobi blew and pierced the Uchiha's chest. The Konoha shinobi wasted no time as they unleashed a barrage of weapons upon the shinobi below. The Iwa shinobi all scattered, running up hills with jutsu firing and weapons blazing.

Genma jumped back just in time for a doton jutsu to crash into the spot he previously occupied. The young shinobi growled deep in his throat before straightening his spine and brandishing a kunai. Hundreds of Iwa shinobi poured from the hilltops just as the long range fighters fired off more attacks, effectively taking out many of the frontline.

A kunoichi jumped in front of Genma and snarled as she attacked with a katon jutsu. It barely missed Genma but managed to singe a few hairs on his arm. He growled once more before pouncing towards the sneering kunoichi.

* * *

Raido was with the midrange fighters dodging stray weapons as he swiftly maneuvered his way through battling shinobi. Konoha was outnumbered two to one, but there was hope. He grinned as he noticed Kakashi and Naru fighting side-by-side. He had been worried about those two, but their movements almost mirrored each other.

"Come on little boy, let's go."

Raido turned a bored eye to the older shinobi in front of him before squaring his stance and erupting into one of Konoha's powerful taijutsu attacks. The Iwa shinobi stumbled backwards before grinning and tossing an exploding tag in Raido's direction.

The boy's eyes widened before he dodged, accidently knocking into another Iwa shinobi that was attempting to land a killing blow on one of his comrades. The fallen Leaf shinobi rolled away and sliced through Raido's attacker's Achilles tendon. The man fell to the ground in pain before a kunai was sliced across his throat.

Raido nodded his thanks to his comrade before getting his head back into the battle and helping another Konoha shinobi as they were ganged up on by Iwa shinobi.

* * *

Kakashi and Naru were doing amazingly well considering the fact that they hadn't been together on a battlefield in nearly an entire year. It was almost like their bodies remembered how to fight together, almost like an invisible string tied them together. They were a sight to see with their katanas blazing side-by-side and their chakras dancing together in the darkness.

They were still terribly handicapped with their heights, but with a few well placed lunges and hits, they were easily taking out their opponents. That is, until Iwa started getting serious.

Kakashi quickly found himself being pushed back by an older jounin with an ugly scar running underneath his nose. Naru was instantly at his side, but the man kicked her into the arms of another Iwa shinobi with dirty blond hair. The man quickly wrapped his hands around Naru's neck and shook her harshly. Kakashi's blood boiled in his veins as he watched Naru's head swing unnaturally from the force of the jolts. His eyes narrowed dangerously as he pushed chakra into his feet and thrust his fist into the other shinobi's knee cap. The man dropped, clutching his shattered knee and giving Kakashi the distraction he needed to jump up and jab a kunai deep into the eye of the blond haired man.

Naru landed on her feet just as Kakashi landed safely on the ground. She held her throat before grinning and nodding her thanks to him. Kakashi winked before tapping his headband, their promise to watch out for each other and live in order to save the future. Naru returned the gesture with a tap of her own before spinning on her heel and kicking a kunoichi in the face as she tried to sneak up on her.

Kakashi reached behind him and pulled out _Hanshou_ before reaching down and handing Naru _Tsukiakari_. Her katana had fallen to the ground once the shinobi started shaking her. Naru grinned as she took it and turned to jump right back into the fray. Kakashi raced over to finish off the man with the scar before following after Naru.

* * *

Minato sprinted through the battlefield with his Rasengan swirling to life and cutting down shinobi left and right. It was a powerful feeling, but it wasn't rewarding. No matter how many he cut down, more kept coming. The Leaf side was doing okay, but they weren't winning by a landslide victory. Hell, most were just barely hanging on.

It was in that moment that Minato realized they weren't going to win until the Iwa shinobi were trapped inside the forest. Sakumo would have to call a retreat soon so they could lure them in there.

He sighed before thrusting his dying Rasengan into a dark haired Iwa shinobi just as they finished wiping their bloodied blade on the shirt of their victim.

* * *

Sakumo's tanto sliced cleanly through the other shinobi's spine causing the head to flop forward before the small piece of skin holding it together snapped and allowed the still twitching head to drop to the ground. The silver haired man stepped away as a spray of blood coated the dumbstruck kunoichi beside him. It was only a matter of minutes before he lunged his tanto into her throat and watched her drop to the ground.

His palms were slightly sweaty against this tanto, something unusual for him. He just figured it was because his kids were somewhere on the battlefield and he couldn't see them. He looked out over the ongoing battle and saw how Iwa was taking over. He knew it was time to call a retreat.

With a loud voice, he called out the retreat orders.

"Retreat! Fall back into the forest."

* * *

Naru grinned as Sakumo called for a retreat. The retreat was their signal to lure Iwa into their traps in the forest. Suddenly, the Konoha forces began moving towards the safety of the trees and hid their gleeful expressions as the Iwa shinobi followed them. Unfortunately for Kakashi and Naru, the shinobi following them weren't about to let them get to the trees. Kakashi let out a gasp of pain as a kunai embedded itself deep into his shoulder blade. Naru growled as she let loose a few kunai of her own before going over to help Kakashi.

"We can't stop Naru! Get to the forest. Now!"

Naru nodded and quickly grabbed Kakashi's hand as the shinobi behind them started gaining on them. They knew they wouldn't be able to stop once they reached the trees because the enemies were too close behind them and were gaining supporters. Nearly twenty shinobi chased after Kakashi and Naru as they began their last ditch effort to get close to the forest.

The Konoha shinobi could do nothing but watch and hope that the two would get close enough to a trap in order to take them all out. A few seconds later, the two chunin crashed through underbrush as they frantically raced towards the middle of the forest were a rather large trap was set up. Once they made it to the clearing in the middle of the forest, Kakashi stopped and spun around to watch the shinobi step into the clearing. Naru's eyes were wide as she realized what he was doing. She stood beside him, never letting go of his hand as they stared down the shinobi entering the area.

"These two would fetch a pretty good sum if we take them back to Iwa. I'm sure both would make excellent additions to someone's bed."

Kakashi growled deep in his throat as Naru snarled and pulled out a kunai. Their limbs trembled slightly in excitement as they watched the enemy shinobi step fully into the clearing and close in on them. Behind them, they could hear the slightest rustle of leaves as the special ops team prepared the trap.

Naru gave a vicious grin as she squared her stance and stared the shinobi down.

"Come get us, if you want us."

The shinobi lunged forward just as Kakashi and Naru dropped to the ground. The shinobi in front of the two looked confused as he watched them drop to the ground. He tried to take a step forward before realizing his legs weren't listening to him. Shock registered across his face as the top of his body disconnected from the lower half. He was dead before he ever hit the ground.

Similar reactions went up all around the group before their own bodies fell apart, causing the ground to become littered with blood and warm entrails. A single, blood covered string of ninja wire could be seen running from one side of the clearing to the other. Ninja wire was sharper than most razors and combined with speed, it was an excellent tool to use in decapitations. Deadly, invisible, and effective.

One of the shinobi manning the traps stepped into the clearing and looked over both of the exhausted forms of the children. His own face showing absolute disgust over the carnage scattered throughout the clearing.

"You two okay?"

Naru took a deep breath and swallowed down the bile that had risen up from her stomach. "Yeah, just didn't expect it to be that messy."

Kakashi chuckled as he wiped a speck of blood away from Naru's cheek. "Messy isn't even the word to describe that."

Naru rolled her eyes at her silver haired friend before turning to look back to the battleground. "We've got to go back."

Kakashi nodded and stepped towards the opening in the tree line. "Let's go."

* * *

Similar traps were unleashed all along the forest as Iwa shinobi poured into the mile wide patch of trees. Sakumo couldn't believe how well everything was going. Iwa had lost a lot of shinobi, as had Konoha, but it appeared as if Konoha was actually winning. He could tell from his position in the trees that the battle wasn't going to last much longer. His fighters were already reappearing from the forest and returning to battle against the Iwa shinobi that quickly realized the dangers of the forest.

"Hey Sakumo, having fun hanging out in the tree?"

Sakumo immediately recognized Minato's voice even before the man landed on the branch beside him.

"We're actually winning Minato."

The blond haired man grinned, but it was a tried grin. "I feel about a hundred years older than I did hours ago. There's been so much bloodshed and death out there."

Sakumo nodded solemnly as he closed his eyes and thought about the numbers of men and women lost on the battlefield. "On both sides, so much death on both sides. It's almost time to end this battle."

Minato nodded in agreement before he looked over the trees and noticed something in the center of the battlefield. His eyes widened as he slowly realized what was happening.

"Kakashi!"

Sakumo's eyes instantly snapped open and looked to where Minato was looking. Fear and anger gripped his heart as he jumped out of the tree and raced towards his son's downed form. In his heart, though, he knew he wasn't going to make it in time.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I'm not exactly sure what happened.

Naru and I raced back into the fight with renewed energy, but the shinobi that remained on the battlefield were so much cleverer than the ones that followed us into the forest. Naru and I drew our katanas to fight, but thanks to a cleverly placed genjutsu we were too disoriented to land a strike. Once I finally figured out that the genjutsu was messing us up, it was too late to do anything. They had managed to separate us. Naru ended up battling with a pair of shinobi halfway across from me and I sat immobilized on the ground.

The jounin in front of me had helpfully pinched a nerve in my back, awarding me instant temporary paralysis. I couldn't move my legs and _Hanshou_ was too far away for me to grab. I stared up in acceptance. It's a funny feeling knowing you're going to die and accepting it at face value. I wasn't going to lie, I was disappointed I wouldn't get to see Naru save the world or become Hokage, but at least I had helped further her along.

For a few moments I allowed myself to think about my Dad. My death was going to destroy him. I just hoped Naru would help him. Sensei would mourn too.

They would miss me. I'm glad I actually had people to miss me this time around.

It's a strange feeling having to watch the blade that's about to end your life come closer to your body. Time seems to slow down and everything around you happens in slow motion. The shouts grow silent and a sort of peace rings in the air.

I closed my eyes.

Mother here I come.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Every shinobi across the field stopped as red charka erupted from the blonde haired girl, only to disappear again just as quickly as it appeared. Naru stared quietly at the spot her friend occupied and clutched at her aching heart as she used her anger to destroy the pair of shinobi fighting her.

Sakumo and Minato arrived on the scene just in time to watch the blade ring through the air and find a home in soft flesh. Sakumo's eyes watered in complete disbelief as Minato instantly sprung into action and killed the shinobi wielding the deadly weapon.

Kakashi opened his eyes and looked up into the watering eyes of Rafu. The blade was sticking completely through his chest, but he had a smile on his face as he reached out and stroked Kakashi's cheek with his thumb.

"In a perfect world, I would have been your father, but nothing is ever perfect. I loved your mother and promised I would take care of you. I have so many regrets, but I'm happy. I'm happy because I died to protect you for your mother."

Sakumo moved to Rafu's side and placed a shaking hand on the man's shoulder.

"Sakumo, pull the blade out for me. I need to lie down."

Sakumo nodded as he grasped the handle of the weapon and quickly pulled the blade out. It made a wet sound before blood poured from the wounds. Rafu ignored them and simply looked up at the gray sky above him.

"Sakumo?"

The silver haired man looked down at the man that had saved his son's life. "Yeah?"

"I told you I would repay you one day. Are my debts cleared with you?"

Sakumo thought back to the scene between him and Rafu in the graveyard and he nodded. "You're forgiven Rafu. Fully forgiven."

Rafu smiled as he coughed up blood. Memories danced across his eyes and he found himself remembering happier times. Times when life was sweeter and the world was younger. Most importantly, he remembered Nozomi. He remembered how beautiful she looked on her wedding day and how complete she looked holding a baby Kakashi in her arms. For the first time, Rafu realized how ignorant and selfish he was and somehow he knew he was already forgiven for all of his shortcomings.

As his eyes closed for the last time, he caught the sight of green eyes and white flowers. He caught the sight of a memory long forgotten of a field of white daisies and the sound of a giggling girl. Somewhere in his heart, Rafu hoped that field was his final resting place in the hereafter.

He smiled then and a tear escaped from his eye as he took his last breath. Sakumo reached over and removed the dog tags from around his neck before moving away to seeing about Kakashi.

His son was alright, a little shaken, but alive and well. All thanks to Rafu, his onetime enemy. With a trembling hand, Sakumo lifted Kakashi and gave out the final call.

"Finish this!"

All around the battlefield, shinobi were breaking tubes of Orochimaru's gas and tossing them at their opponents. Konoha's remaining shinobi took to the trees as they watched the remaining shinobi turn on each other. They continued fighting well onto nightfall before Sakumo sent shinobi out to kill the remaining survivors.

Two days of battling ended with Sakumo moving the weary, but victorious Konoha shinobi away from the bloody battlefield. Konoha sustained many deaths, about one hundred altogether, but Iwa's side was almost decimated. Five hundred men and women dead, it wasn't the one thousand predicted, but it was an astronomical number. It was a hollow victory for some, for such death was saddening.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

It took just under a week for body cleanup. All the Leaf shinobi were searched for personal items to send back to their families before finally burning. The Iwa shinobi were searched for any information and extra weapons before their bodies were burned. I truly believe the Forest of Lost Souls will forever smell of burning flesh.

Kakashi was okay, his paralysis wore off eventually, but I think the entire ordeal just freaked him out. I know I'm still having problems with it, because I was so close to losing him. It was a real eye opener. One I don't hope to have ever again.

Sensei just received word from the Hokage a few days ago that we were all to report back to Konoha as soon as cleanup was finished. We were finally getting a vacation. I'm excited to say the least. I hadn't seen Konoha in nearly three years. I missed the place and couldn't wait to get back home. I just wished it was on better terms. We had at least one hundred and fifty dog tags to carry back with us, including Ryuu's. I think Raido suspects something, though, he didn't come out and ask about it, but he knew Ryuu was supposed to be in Konoha's camp. I just don't have to heart to tell him right now. Sensei said he would tell the family after we returned to Konoha, but I'm determined to go with him. Ryuu was my friend too.

"Oh Fishcake!"

Kakashi's back to normal, or at least as normal as he can be. He's even using his favorite nickname for me again.

"What Scarecrow?"

"Pack your bags, we're heading back to Konoha."

I grinned before racing over to ready my pack, Konoha here we come. Most importantly, ramen here I come.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

It took three days before the company of shinobi walked into Fire Nation borders. They were all exhausted and probably should have stopped somewhere to rest, but the knowledge that they were just a few hours from home wouldn't allow them to stop.

The last few miles Kakashi and Naru fell right back into their old bickering ways, annoying Sakumo to the point where he told them to settle it by a contest, which then turned into a footrace between the two of them.

Naru giggled excitedly as she stuck her tongue out at Kakashi and raced forward. "Last one there has to buy the ramen."

Kakashi's eyes narrowed as he raced after Naru. Sakumo and Minato just rolled their eyes at their children.

It turned out that Kakashi and Naru were pretty much matched for speed, they both entered the village gates at the same time, but their celebration was cut short as they looked around them. Buildings were in flames and bodies littered the road. Kakashi walked over and kicked over the body of a fallen shinobi, on his forehead protector a rock mockingly glared at the young shinobi.

"Go get Dad, Naru."

Naru nodded and raced back to where Sakumo and the rest of the strolling shinobi were at. Sakumo snorted as he playfully asked if she lost the race.

"No Sensei, Konoha's been attacked. Iwa invaded Konoha."

The happy faces dropped quickly as the shinobi raced forward, hoping and praying they weren't coming home to death.


	39. Part 2: Chapter 9

**Part 2: Chapter 9**

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

"Stop right there! Don't move another inch!"

Perhaps walking into Konoha during an invasion wasn't the brightest idea I've ever had. In my own defense, though, I couldn't have known about the attack. I don't remember there being an invasion before. Of course, last time I was too busy throwing myself into mission after mission to care. Sometimes I marvel at the differences from this timeline and the one I remember. I am different than the person I once was. Sometimes I feel like I've left behind the old Hatake Kakashi and grown into a new person. I find my thoughts and actions shocking myself more often, but I don't regret them. I'm becoming a better shinobi because of it, a better protector for my Will of Fire.

I'm becoming human, something I denied myself the first time around.

"Hands up and away from any weapons, kid."

I did as the voice ordered, not that I could ignore a direct order from the two armed ANBU in front of me. I wasn't stupid. Konoha was in complete lockdown mode. Anybody entering or leaving Konoha would be treated as an enemy until everything was sorted out. Just because I looked like Kakashi didn't mean they were going to believe I was Kakashi. ANBU knew about henges and not even the greenest rookie would make the mistake of _assuming_ I was Kakashi.

"Identify yourself."

Another ANBU, this one wearing the white armor of a captain, jumped down from the trees that dotted the side of the road. Even with the dust stirring in the air, I could tell from the tattoo on the right arm that this captain was female. I gulped back the cough that threatened to erupt from my throat as the dust tickled my sensitive senses. Normally my mask would filter out the dust, but this particular mask had worn thin with time. I hadn't changed it in nearly two years, so it wasn't doing the best job of filtering small dust particles.

"Hatake Kakashi, Chunin, ID number 009720."

I could feel the captain's eyes burning a hole into the side of my head. I stared back just as hard at her. All I could see was the painted on red stripes going across her white mask. Somewhere in the back of my mind I immediately connected those stripes to those of a tiger. Then, just like a tiger, she stalked forward until I could smell the faint scent of blood on her weapons and feel the heat of her body.

I didn't know why, but suddenly this felt more like a challenge than it did an intimidation. This wasn't the time or place for something like that, but I would be damned before I backed down from a challenge. I straightened my back and looked up at her. She snarled just as my eyes narrowed at her. That snarl sounded so familiar.

"Baby Fang, you've come a long way."

At that point I knew exactly who the female captain was.

" _Tsukiko_." The name came off of my tongue as a snarl. "I wish I could say I'm glad to see you."

Her mask twitched and I almost wanted to guess she was either smiling or losing her composure because of frustration. Yes, I did get secret joy out of seeing her lose her composure. She shrugged it off before laying a very domineering hand on my shoulder and pushing me towards the middle of town.

"We have so many things to discuss, Kakashi."

"What do you mean?"

She looked down at me again before turning to give the others a very complicated and fast signal. I caught a few words of it, but not enough to read everything she said. They both immediately disappeared, leaving us alone.

"Konoha, as you can see, has been attacked. Despite our efforts in Iwa, Konoha still suffered. I want to put an offer out on the table, one that I doubt you can refuse."

I raised an eyebrow at her and narrowed my eyes. "What are you talking about?"

"ANBU. We've wanted you and Naru for a while now. All that's stopping you from joining our ranks is your own personal opinion and the Hokage."

"The Hokage would never go for it, nor would my father."

The woman that I knew as Tsukiko leaned down and sneered hatefully in my ear. "You can't hold onto daddy's hand forever. He's held you back long enough."

I opened my mouth to say more, but the others had finally caught up. Naru was in the front with a blank stare in her eyes. I knew exactly what she was thinking. This reminded her of Konoha as Sasuke's army tore through it. Seeing destruction like this on our travels was enough to send chills down our spines, but coming home to our Konoha in ruins was like something out of a nightmare.

Dad approached Tsukiko first. "ANBU-san, what happened here?"

Tsukiko held my gaze for a little longer before addressing Dad. "Hatake-sama, the Hokage has given orders to bring you to his office. Everyone else can go home."

Ronin stepped up from the middle of the group and scowled at the woman. "With our village like this? How can you expect us to just go home?"

"Jounin-san, the invaders only made it to the marketplace. Konoha casualties are only a handful thanks to the quick action of our homebound shinobi and civilians. Everything is taken care of. The danger is over, Jounin-san."

Ronin didn't back down from the dismissal in the woman's tone and words. "Then why are the gates so carelessly thrown open? Are we begging to be attacked again?"

I could tell from the slight change in Tsukiko's posture that she was annoyed with Ronin. I knew that stance all too well from training with her. "The gates are open because the Hokage was expecting you. No one other than a Konoha shinobi will make it through those gates. I promise you that."

Ronin wilted at the harsh tone of her voice. She meant business this time around and wasn't going to settle for any more questions. Dad looked at her with a curious look in his eyes before shifting them to rest on me. I hoped my body language gave away nothing because if it did, Tsukiko was one dead ANBU.

"You heard her, everybody. Go home to your families."

The remaining shinobi began to disperse leaving behind Sensei, Naru, and I. Dad looked back over to me once more before winking and pointing back at Minato. "I believe the race was a tie, so I'll pay for the ramen. Order me a bowl of beef ramen and we'll meet up after my meeting with the Hokage."

Naru pouted over the fact that she hadn't beat me before smiling like an idiot after she realized she was getting ramen. I don't think she's had it in about a year. Before I knew it, I was being dragged across Konoha towards the ramen stand. Luckily for Naru, the stand was on the other side of the market and well away from where the enemies invaded. Unluckily for me, that meant I would get the pleasure of watching her slurp down enough ramen to give her high cholesterol before the age of eleven.

Oh the joys of calling Namikaze Naru my friend.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Minato shifted nervously as Sakumo began to follow behind the masked ANBU. "Sakumo, before you go, will you answer a question for me?"

Sakumo turned around and nodded as he walked over to Minato. "Something bothering you?"

"Yeah, when Kakashi was injured, red chakra erupted from Naru. I've never felt something so powerful and raw before. Do you have any idea what it is?"

Sakumo grinned sheepishly at the man. "Sorry, I thought I told you. It's her bloodlimit. I assume it's from her mother's side of the family since you apparently don't know about it."

"Oh. So, she's okay? It just felt so painful, like it was demonic or something."

Sakumo's forehead creased as he took in Minato's obvious tension and worry over the red chakra. He hadn't felt anything out of place with her chakra. Of course, that could be because of his own chakra. All bloodlimits could be traced back to some sort of demonic origin. They were considered either a gift or a curse, depending on how they were used.

"Don't worry Minato. I've seen her use it before, it's fine. If it continues to worry you, then ask her about it or see the Hokage. He's the one who told me."

Minato let out a sigh of relief before grinning and shaking his head. "I'm sure I'm just overreacting. Have fun with the Hokage."

As Minato walked away, Sakumo returned to the female ANBU's side and followed her to the Tower. The walk to the Tower was silent, only the lightest sound of footfalls could be heard coming from Sakumo's feet. Deep inside, the ANBU named Tsukiko knew he was only doing it for her benefit. Hatake Sakumo was a powerful shinobi and she admired him, regardless of what she said to bait Kakashi. She knew him to be the better shinobi. A part of her hoped he didn't know she was his son's tormentor.

When they entered the shadow of the Hokage Tower, Sakumo lightly grabbed her arm and pulled her into the alley between the Tower and one of the civilian administrative buildings. All Tsukiko could do was groan, as she let him pull her into the alley. There was no sense in fighting him, especially when he knew exactly who she was.

"I'm not stupid, _Tsukiko_."

"Never said you were, Hatake-sama."

"I may not have heard everything you said to Kakashi while we were walking up, but I heard and saw enough to be pissed. I'm telling you right here and now, if any ANBU touches a single hair on his head or Naru's then you're going to have to answer to me."

Sakumo moved away from Tsukiko as the woman let out a stern warning. "The reports have been on the Hokage's desk for weeks, pretty soon you won't be able to stop their admittance into ANBU. The ranks have thinned since the war started and soon those that rightfully belong in the shadows will reside there."

The silver haired man turned and pinned the woman in her spot with just a single glance. "They belong in the light. The darkness would swallow them whole and destroy the remaining innocence they have."

"You can't protect them forever."

Sakumo snorted in laughter before he walked out of the alley. His voice was haunting and cold as his words wrapped around Tsukiko and showed her just how hard they were going to have to work if they wanted the two chunin. "Obviously you've never seen what happens when you get between a wolf and his pups. The wolf will tear apart any threat without even batting an eye. There's a reason my summons are wolves, so _please_ , touch either one of them, I _dare_ you."

Tsukiko waited until Sakumo was around the corner before bringing her slightly shaking hands together to form seals. Ignoring the warning, she knew it was time to begin Operation Highjack.

* * *

"First off, I want to say you did an amazing job in Kusagakure. We won our first battle in months all because of your planning."

Sakumo let the compliment roll off his back before shaking his head. "No sir, it was a victory because of the soldiers. If they wouldn't have done their jobs then all of my planning would have been for naught."

Sarutobi Hiruzen grinned slightly before standing up and reaching into his desk to pull out a packet of papers. "You've been outside the village for three years, how does a few months on mission duty for all of you sound? I need both Kakashi and Naru at their peak health for an event that's going to happen in five months."

"Five months from now?" Sakumo looked slightly worried as he shifted to watch the Hokage lazily scrawl across the top of the papers. "I mean no disrespect, but is that a wise idea? Kakashi and Naru went through all of this training and are going to be stationed here for five months? I'm sorry sir, but it appears that you're not using common sense right now."

The Sandaime nodded his head as he shifted the papers around, even though his subordinates words should have made him angry, he took the concern in stride. Sakumo was partially right; it wasn't a very smart idea to station them inside Konoha, unless he had another plan in play. "Konoha is in prime position right now to carry out a huge operation that could potentially win us the war. In order to accomplish it, I need all of you off the battlefield, especially Kakashi and Naru. They have a very big job coming up, but we'll discuss that at length later. For now, enjoy your vacation."

"Hokage-sama, I may not understand where you're going with this, but I'll trust your judgment. You are the Hokage."

"I'm glad I have your loyalty. Loyalty is something highly treasured in times like these. I lose more loyal men than I do disloyal. They fight for their village without any regard of their own lives." The Hokage looked years older as he looked outside at the smoke rising from some of the buildings along the main entrance to the village. "Even the civilians are willing to lay down their lives for the good of Konoha."

"Sir, the invasion?"

"The invasion is over and there is nothing more to do other than clean up. My ANBU are already taking care of that."

"How did it happen?"

The Hokage sighed and closed his eyes before speaking. "Kakashi's mission was to assassinate a man by the name of Abe Fudo, one of Iwa's new strategists. We thought he would be gone before he planned anything big on Konoha, but apparently one of his plans was already inaction at the time of his death. We lost a few civilians and a few shinobi, but the invaders were stopped."

"I wish I could have been here."

"Sakumo, nothing was going to stop this from happening. In fact, I'm almost glad it did happen. I'll always regret the lives lost, but never will I regret the fruits of Iwa's actions. Konoha's energy and hatred for Iwa is renewed now. I'll have more passionate soldiers because of this, more willing to enlist and serve."

Sakumo looked down at the ground before lowering his voice. "That's a morbid thought, Hokage-sama."

"Indeed it is, but I'm trying to win a war."

Sakumo was silent for a moment before looking up at his Hokage with an unreadable expression in his eyes. "Yeah, but at what cost?"

Sarutobi Hiruzen met Sakumo's eyes and held the unyielding gaze for a few minutes before answering. "It's a hard pill to swallow Sakumo, but you know exactly what the cost is."

Sakumo did know. It was the same knowledge he took to bed with him every night. He knew exactly what the cost of winning this war would be, an entire generation of shinobi from both countries.

"I do know Hokage-sama. I've got enough dog tags weighing down my weapon's pouch to remind me each time I take a step."

Hiruzen looked down at the lists of dead and missing-in-action shinobi in front of him. Konoha was losing more shinobi with each assault. It almost made him feel like they were taking two steps forward and three steps backwards.

"The dog tags need to be returned to the families."

Sakumo nodded as he reached into his weapon's pouch and pulled out at least twenty-five worn and bloodstained tags. "Tomorrow. I'll do it tomorrow."

The Sandaime's eyes were trained on the bent metal before he nodded his approval. It was tradition in Konoha for the commanding officer to return the dog tags to the family. A morbid and unwanted job, but someone like Sakumo always managed to do it with dignity and calm comfort. All Hiruzen could do was picture receiving one of his sons or perhaps his adopted grandson's dog tag as he thought about the families waiting with bated breath for their loved ones to return. It was almost cruel to make them wait, but Sakumo needed time to mentally prepare for his task.

"Good luck Sakumo."

Sakumo held up a hand in response before disappearing from the room, just as a small toddler raced into the room. He looked nothing like a Sarutobi, but he bore the clan symbol upon his shoulder and Hiruzen loved the little boy just as much as he would a biological grandson.

"Jiiji!"

For just a little bit, Hiruzen could pretend he didn't have the council breathing down his neck. He could pretend there wasn't an order to draft two ten-year-olds into ANBU. He could imagine that there wasn't a war right outside his office. For a little while, Hiruzen played happily with the son of an Iwa soldier that bore his last name and wondered if the shinobi villages would ever love each other as grandson and grandfather did. Would there ever be a true peace amongst the shinobi nations?

Those were the thoughts that kept the Hokage up at night. Questions that he didn't even know how to begin to answer.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

"I don't know where she puts it all. I swear that's her seventh bowl."

"Sensei, her stomach is a bottomless pit."

"What I love is that she keeps eating and still doesn't gain any weight. I'm getting love handles just by watching her."

If the pork ramen I was eating wasn't so good, I would have thrown the bowl at their heads, but it was really too good to waste.

"Poor Sakumo, he's going to go broke trying to feed Naru."

"Better than going broke trying to feed you, Minato."

"Hey!"

I put my bowl down and wiped my mouth on the back of my hand. Kakashi rolled his eyes at my actions before giving Sensei the beef ramen we ordered for him. As Sensei sat on the stool, I couldn't help but feel like there was something off about the man. He wasn't speaking, just sitting there staring at the chopsticks in his hand.

"So Sensei, what did the Old Man want?"

Dad groaned at my nickname for the Hokage as Sensei looked at me with an amused twinkle in his eyes. Even though his eyes were twinkling, his grip on the chopsticks increased enough to splinter the wood. He didn't even pay it any attention. Now I knew something was wrong.

"Just to get the mission report and give us a sabbatical from the battlefield for a little while."

"Seriously?"

Sensei nodded and thanked the waitress as she brought him a fresh pair of chopsticks. "Seriously. After we finish here, we've got to pick a surprise up and then we're headin' home. I want to do nothing more than collapse into my bed and sleep for the next two days. Anybody with me?"

Kakashi rolled his eyes at Sensei, but agreed all the same. I too wanted nothing more than to take a hot shower and curl up in a nice, clean bed.

Dad laughed before standing up and grinning. "I'm heading home. A little birdie told me that a certain fiery red-head was curled up on the couch just begging for someone to pour water on her."

Sensei nearly choked on his ramen as he tried to calm the laughter in his chest. "She's going to kill you for spying on her with those toads, if she doesn't kill you for dumping water on her."

"Nah, I'll make it up to her. See y'all later."

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Minato walked into the house and grinned as he heard the water running in the bathroom. He may not have gotten to pour water on his favorite redhead, but seeing her barely clothed was more than enough to make up for it. As quickly as he could, he walked into the bathroom and saw his fiery lover lounging in the large soaking tub. With her long red hair piled on top of her head and her body sunk deeply into the water she looked perfectly content and relaxed. Even more so if the happy moan was any indication.

For a few minutes, Minato just let himself watch her relax in the steaming water. It didn't take long for her to realize he was watching her. She opened those exotic colored eyes to wink at the pink-cheeked man. With one long finger, Kushina wagged him forward and lifted herself to rest her back fully against the porcelain tub, fully expecting him to follow her unsaid command.

Minato did exactly as she commanded and quickly stripped before climbing into the tub in front of her. The slight temperature change between the room and the hot water caused his skin to sting, but the feel of Kushina's fingers against his shoulders were enough to soothe the unpleasant burn. Fully ready to just relax with his girlfriend, Minato leaned back and rested the back of his head against her shoulder as she raised her knees to recline in a more comfortable position.

Kushina nuzzled the top of his head before bringing up a wet and sudsy rag to gently scrub at a small trace of dirt in the crease of his neck. The man sighed appreciatively as he reached down to massage gentle circles into the calves of her legs. Legs that had to be exhausted from the strain of constant warring. For a few minutes, they were both silent, until Minato broke the silence.

"I missed you."

A wiry smile broke across Kushina's face as she leaned down and kissed his cheek. "Blondie, I missed you too."

Minato gave his lover a leer that would make Jiraiya proud before pulling Kushina's head to his lips and thoroughly reacquainting them.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I must say, when Sensei said we were going to pick up a surprise I never expected the surprise to have changed so much. Our little Aki wasn't so little anymore.

"Aki?"

The black and white dog immediately recognized her master. In less than five seconds she was across the yard and on top of Kakashi, welcoming him back with excited yips and slobbery doggie kisses. Sensei laughed as he reached down and tried to pull the playful dog off of his son.

"Calm down, Aki. You'll have plenty of time to play with Kakashi later."

Kakashi grinned up at Sensei before patting Aki on the top of her head. "I've missed you too, Aki."

She barked loudly before plowing back into Kakashi and licking a long stripe up his masked face. Sensei shook his head in playful frustration before walking towards the Maito house to thank Gai's mother for watching Aki while we were gone.

Once Aki finished welcoming Kakashi home, she turned her sights towards me. With one wag of her tail she was beside me and happily rubbing against me like an overgrown cat.

I giggled before scratching her behind the ears. "I've missed you so much, Aki!"

She barked again before taking off to welcome Sensei as he walked back outside, having her back really felt like we were home.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

With Aki by their side, the group walked the short distance across Konoha to the Hatake home. The streets were clean by now, but there was still an air of unease throughout the entire village. From their position in the middle of the market, the trio could easily see the tightly shut gates. All entrances and exits to and from Konoha were blocked for now. It was simply a matter of security.

All of the unease in the air slowly dissipated, though, as the group neared the welcomed sight of the Hatake family home. The tension in Sakumo's shoulders seemed to roll off and disappear into the air as they walked through the gates and up the steps of their home. Naru was nearly bouncing on the balls of her feet in excitement while Kakashi was trying his hardest to not push his dad out of the way and run into the house. Sakumo was simply soaking in the feeling of finally being home.

Too slowly for Naru's nerves to handle, Sakumo pushed open the front door and walked into the house. Kakashi and Naru were just seconds behind him with Aki and making a beeline for their rooms when they stopped and looked at the condition of the house. Everything was covered in a thick layer of dust and grime.

Naru coughed as Aki ran over to jump on the couch and stirred dust into the air. Kakashi could feel his irritated eyes watering as he walked around the living room to take in the mess. Sakumo was running his hands through his hair in tired frustration.

"I forgot to put in an upkeep mission at the Mission's desk. If I would have remembered, a genin team would have cleaned the house once a month until we returned."

Despite the mess before her, Naru laughed at the defeated look on her sensei's face. "It's okay, Sakumo-sensei! We can clean this up in no time."

Kakashi picked up a dust-covered pillow and hit it a few times to draw the dust out. "Yeah Dad, we can clean this easily, especially with Naru's clones."

Sakumo smiled at the two before pointing upstairs to the bedrooms. "Well, let's change into something more comfortable and get to work."

The younger two ran upstairs and were greeted with similar scenes in their bedrooms as the one downstairs in the living room. Dust seemed to be the most prominent problem, except for the clothes scattered around the floor. Clothes were still piled up in both of their rooms from where they were trying to pack lightly for war. Only now a collection of dust and lint covered the clothes. Their beds were just as they left them, unmade and slept in, but now the once light colored sheets were discolored and dirty. Their rooms were going to need some major work.

Kakashi rummaged through his dresser drawers and found a pair of grey sweatpants. Originally they had been too big on him, but now he could wear them without rolling the legs up. It was a testament to how much he had grown since the last time he was in his home. He didn't have to worry about his shirts, they still fit him. He may have grown taller, but his muscle mass around his frame hadn't increased too drastically and it probably wouldn't until he hit puberty. Kakashi randomly picked up an old dark green shirt and pulled it over his head before heading downstairs.

Naru's clothes were literally thrown everywhere. She remembered the mad dash of trying to stuff clothes into her pack and just as she guessed, her clothes ended up in every corner of the room. Knowing the clothes on the floor weren't going to be wearable, Naru took to looking through the dresser in her room. She found a pair of black cotton shorts that she used to sleep in, but they were a little shorter than she remembered them being. She decided to ignore it before managing to find her favorite orange shirt and quickly putting that on. Naru pulled her shorts down a little bit before considering herself presentable and running downstairs to wait with Kakashi.

Sakumo's bedroom was in a similar state of disarray. Unlike the other two rooms, his bed was made and his clothes were carefully draped over the bed, but his floor was littered with sheets of paper and extra supplies that didn't make it into his pack. His bathroom was in worse shape. The water was luckily clear, but the tub and sink had stained with a brown water ring. He assumed he'd find similar conditions in the other bathrooms of the house.

Once his inspection was done, Sakumo walked to his closet and looked inside the open door. A slight pang of pain clenched his heart as his eyes settled onto the part of his closet where his wife's clothes still hung. Pushing the pain away from his mind, Sakumo reached in and grabbed a pair of black pants. He immediately dropped them back into the closet as he realized they were the same pants he wore to Nozomi's funeral. He knew because the pocket was torn where he had trained in them after her funeral to see if he could beat the pain away with his knuckles.

Sakumo shook his head as he backed away from the closet. He was being too sentimental all of a sudden. Perhaps it was just the idea of being back inside his home for the first time in three years. He was back in his own domain and actually allowing his emotions to come out as he felt them. It was overwhelming to be back and see things he had forgotten about while he was gone. It could even be the emotions surrounding the dog tags still sitting in his weapon's pouch.

The silver haired man reached back into his closet and pulled out a pair of black sweatpants. Then with little care, he pulled out a long-sleeved grey shirt. Once dressed, he closed the closet door and headed downstairs to get started.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

Our first order of business was airing the entire house out. It had a stuffy smell clinging to the fabrics that reminded me of mothballs, so I knew if it was bothering me, then Sensei and Kakashi had to have been miserable. Aki had fun running underneath our feet as we opened doors and windows on both levels of the house. She also had fun dragging pillows and rugs out into the yard to air out. I just hoped it didn't rain or we'd have an even bigger mess.

True to our original plan, I made a couple of clones and set them out to start dusting. In almost no time at all, the living room was looking like it did before we left. The slight breeze from outside did an amazing job of bringing fresh air inside the house and taking out the stuffy smell.

We moved from the living room into the kitchen. The kitchen wasn't too terrible. My clones had already taken care of the dusting and all the dishes were clean. Sensei did remember to clean and put those away before we left. I wanted to tease him for being so scatterbrained about this, but I knew he had a lot on his mind during the days leading up to our deployment. I would just wait and see if he did it again before teasing him mercilessly.

What I didn't anticipate was opening the refrigerator door and being met with a creature that looked more threatening than any Iwa shinobi I'd faced thus far. The smell was bad enough to send Kakashi running outside gagging. It was a putrid combination of spoilt milk, rotten vegetables, and cheese. Sensei looked absolutely green as he slammed the door shut and took deep, gulping breaths of fresh air from the opened window.

I looked at him with a raised eyebrow. "So, I'm guessing you forgot to clean out the refrigerator too?"

Sensei glared hard enough to cause me to step back against the wall. "Don't say another word, Naru."

I shrugged and reopened the door of the refrigerator. It was mostly the overwhelming scent of spoilt milk, so I could stomach it a little bit. Sensei and Kakashi, though, couldn't stand to be near it even with their masks. Their sensitive noses were picking up every little scent from inside and I could tell from their horror stricken faces that it didn't smell like a bouquet of roses.

Aki walked into the room and whined loudly before hiding her muzzle underneath her paws. I playfully shooed her out of the kitchen, but she refused to budge. In fact, the silly dog got closer and growled menacingly at the opened refrigerator door. Sensei grinned at the dog, but I wasn't grinning because I saw exactly what Aki was growling at. I stepped away and frantically grabbed at Sensei's shirtsleeve.

"S-sensei! Did that tomato just move?"

Sakumo-sensei peered into the icebox before quickly backtracking and shutting the door as the tomato shuddered.

"Yeah, that tomato moved."

* * *

Somehow we ended up working up enough nerve to tackle the abomination that was the mess in the refrigerator. We had to tackle it in shifts, but eventually it was thoroughly disinfected and usable.

"Okay, the most important rooms are cleaned downstairs. I'm gonna go see about my study. So, why don't you two head upstairs?"

My clones took care of a lot of the rooms upstairs, except Sensei and Kakashi's rooms. So there wasn't a lot for me to do other than help Kakashi. Even then, all I was allowed to do was pile the clothes up outside the door. Kakashi was very particular about the way his room was cleaned. Everything had to be off the floor, hence the reason his clothes were piled up outside the door, and then he would go about straightening everything up. I honestly don't know why he's so uptight about it, but he is. I guess it's just one of those patented Kakashi quirks that I'm supposed to ignore.

Once he was finally satisfied with his room, I brought the clothes back in and we sorted through them. Mostly they were pants and shirts, but a lot weren't wearable. Either they were too short in the leg or too small around the waist. Considering the last time he wore most of those pants was when he was seven, I'm not surprised.

Usually on the battlefield we took clothes as we could get them. For the longest time, only Kakashi and I got new clothes because we were the only ones still growing. The adults weren't going to get any taller, but we sure were.

"What are we going to do with these?"

Kakashi looked over the rather large pile of our combined clothes and pointed toward the ceiling. "Dad usually keeps a bag in the attic for the clothes we've outgrown. Whenever it fills up he'll take it to the thrift store beside the weapon's shop."

"There's a thrift store by the weapon's shop?"

Kakashi looked up from putting away the final shirt before nodding. "Yep. On the left, between the weapon's shop and that diner."

"Oh. I guess I've never noticed it."

"Kind of hard to miss, fishcake, unless you were being your usual unobservant self." I growled playfully at him before tossing a random shirt and watching him easily catch it out of the air. He had the gall to laugh at me as he pulled half the pile into his arms. "Come on Naru, the attic door is down the hallway."

I grabbed the rest of the clothes and walked the few short steps down the hall to the attic door. Kakashi dropped his pile long enough to wiggle the doorknob and hiss in discontent when it remained locked. I stepped forward to help, but he held up a hand to stop me. Gathering his charka to his feet, he walked up the wall and retrieved the key from the top of the doorframe.

He finally got the door open and we quietly walked up the rickety stairs leading into the attic. It wasn't a long hike upwards, but it was creepy. The staircase turned sharply about halfway through and I found myself nearly jumping at the eerie quiet surrounding us. Kakashi seemed unfazed. Sometimes I just wanted to smack the so-called 'coolness' out of him.

Then the staircase leveled out and we were standing in front of a huge open room. There was a thick layer of dust everywhere as well as a good number of cobwebs and dust bunnies. While I was dumbstruck by the room, Kakashi found the bag and was heaving his load in there. I quickly followed after him, but as soon as he took the clothes from me, I just _had_ to go explore the room.

I haven't been in very many attics before, but this one just looked interesting. This one was filled with stuff, trunks, cardboard boxes, bags; almost any kind of container known to man. It literally felt like I was walking into a huge treasure hunt. There was no telling what was in this room.

"Hey Scarecrow, what's in these boxes?"

Kakashi tied the bag together before walking over to stand beside me. "Don't know. Dad's always kept this locked, so I've never been up here before."

I grinned at him and pointed to a random box. "He'll be busy for a while, let's explore."

"I don't know, Naru. I'm sure these boxes are up here for a reason."

I shrugged before walking forward and opening one of the cardboard boxes. "Come on, Kakashi. It's not like Sensei's ever said 'don't go into the attic.'"

He sighed before attempting to walk away. My grin widened as I pulled out a random item.

"Oh look, ninjutsu scrolls."

Kakashi was instantly back at my side and looking through the box with me. Mostly the first box we looked through was ninjutsu scrolls. Mostly lightning based jutsu, which had Kakashi's eyes as big as saucers. I could almost feel his fingers twitching in anticipation of learning the jutsu on the scrolls. The next box was old clothes, really old clothes. They were full of shinobi uniforms and a headband from Kumogakure. I slowly picked up the slashed headband and looked up at Kakashi.

"Your dad was born in Konoha, right?"

He slowly nodded as he gingerly picked up the frayed headband. "I've always assumed so. I mean, lightning affinities are more common in Kumogakure, but that doesn't mean anything, right?"

"I'm sure it's just a coincidence. Let's look at this trunk. It looks important."

Kakashi dropped the headband back into the cardboard box before walking over to help me pull a few boxes off of the large brown trunk. Once the top was clear, I blew across the top of the trunk and watched as a named was revealed in the top right corner, etched into the wood.

Beside me, Kakashi gasped in surprise as he knelt closer to the trunk and reached out to the lid. The name in the top corner read 'Nozomi.' I met his eyes as I traced the letters of her name. "It's your mother's trunk."

He didn't hesitate as he reached for the simple latch on the side and unlatched it. "Let's open it."

With a slight creak, the trunk opened to reveal several bound photo albums, books, and what looked to be a few collectible items. Kakashi's body language screamed hesitation as he reached into the trunk and pulled out one of the photo albums. Across the front of the dark brown album was Kakashi's name in elegant cursive while inside was possibly the cutest thing I've ever seen.

In the picture, Kakashi couldn't have been more than a few minutes old and was nestled safely in his black haired momma's arms. She looked absolutely horrible with her hair sticking to her forehead in clumps and her face a sickly pale color, but her smile was so big. There's no doubt in my mind that she was happy at that moment. Kakashi was really tiny and so very pink even amongst the blue blanket he was swaddled in. He was adorable, especially with the mop of silver hair matted to the top of his head.

I opened my mouth to tell him just how cute I thought he was, but he caught my eye and glared harshly. "Don't you dare say it."

"Scarecrow! Please! You were just so…"

"I'm serious, Naru. Say it and they'll never find your body."

I bit my tongue long enough for him to close the album shut and reach back into the trunk. Once his attention was fully on the items in the trunk, I grinned and pinched his side.

"You were such a cute baby!" The glare and returned pinch were completely worth it. "Okay, okay, it's out of my system! I promise to not mention anymore cuteness I see."

He rolled his eyes at me before pulling out another bound book and opening. It was another photo album, but this time it was people I didn't recognize. We shifted through a few more albums before finding a white and silver kimono folded neatly amongst a few quilts and other colorful kimonos.

Kakashi fingered the silky material before picking it up and setting it against his knees.

"I've seen this in my parents wedding pictures. This was her wedding kimono."

"It's beautiful and expensive looking."

He didn't say anything, only set the kimono on a clean box beside the trunk. While he was making sure the kimono stayed as clean as it could, I reached into the trunk and pulled out a large decorative box. A small design of flowers was painted across the top in soft yellows and blues. I motioned for him to take the box so I could unlatch it.

Inside was girly stuff, like jewelry and decorative hair combs. Kakashi ran a finger across one of the necklaces resting idly against the velvet of the lining of the box.

"Dad must have shoved everything up here after she died."

I lowered my eyes to the ground and fidgeted slightly. "He must have really loved her if it hurt him so much."

"Yeah."

I reached back into the trunk, but accidentally hit the front with my hand. Something clicked loudly as I was trying to ignore the pain. Kakashi grinned at my effort to not curse in pain only to look curiously at the trunk. One of the front panels had popped out. Instantly, I thought I had broken it.

"I'm sorry, Kakashi! I didn't mean to!"

"Calm down, Fishcake, I think it's supposed to open."

Lightly, I pulled open the compartment and a leather bound journal popped out. I grabbed the journal and opened it to see a neat, but tilted scrawl across the first page. After reading a few lines with Kakashi leaning eagerly over my shoulder, I instantly knew what we were looking at. It was Hatake Nozomi's journal.

"What are you two doing?"

Sensei's voice startled us enough for Kakashi to bump into me and cause me to drop the journal. As the journal fell to the ground and landed open, the entire room became silent. Sensei's eyes followed the pages of the journal as they fluttered to the ground before reaching down to pick up two envelopes that had fallen from the journal.

"So this is what you two have been doing all this time. I knew you two were too quiet."

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

I felt like a deer caught in the crosshairs of a hunter's bow once Dad made his presence known. Just how long had he been there? Was he angry that we were looking through this stuff?

Honestly, after the emotional roller coaster I had just been through, I really didn't care how he reacted. This was my mother's stuff. I deserved to know about them and their connection to her. Of course, thinking that and saying that are two different things.

Dad smiled at us as Naru looked down at the floor and mumbled a small apology. "Don't apologize. This is a long overdue discovery. Let's see what you two have dug up."

With the two envelopes and journal grasped safely in his hands, Dad knelt down next to us and shifted through the stuff surrounding us in neat piles. His mouth stretched into an even bigger grin as he discovered those horrid baby pictures.

"Ahh! I've been looking for these forever!"

Naru giggled as she peered over his shoulder at my earliest days. I was never going to live this down. No man should be forced to sit through the torture of listening to someone coo over his baby pictures and regardless of my age I was _still_ a man.

"Dad, can you reminisce later?"

Naru grinned as she poked Dad in the side and pointed back to me with a thumb. "He's embarrassed about them."

Dad laughed as he closed the album, but it sounded false. "Okay, I won't torture you anymore. I'll save that for when your future girlfriend comes over."

"Jeez, thanks Dad."

He reached over and ruffled my hair before slowly stopping as his eyes landed on the kimono resting on top of the cardboard box. Dad reached over and stroked the material with a faraway look in his eyes. "I haven't seen this stuff in years. It brings back a lot of memories."

Dad reached down by his knees and opened the journal with a smile on his face. "While your mother was pregnant with you, her doctor told her to write to alleviate her stress. She never let me read whatever she wrote and used to joke that I could read it after she died." He snapped it closed and sighed deeply. "I think we better head downstairs."

There it was, the signal that Dad was finished remembering my mom. As much as Dad wanted to tell me about her, it was still a very sore spot. One that hadn't healed and probably never would. Naru looked like she was going to protest, but instead she helped reload the trunk and followed Dad out the door. Of course, as Naru was heading towards the front of the room, her eye caught the box full of old uniforms and she stopped.

"Sensei! Before we go, can you tell us about this box?"

Dad looked confused before his eyes lit up in recognition at the sight of the slashed headband. He reached down and plucked the headband up. He shifted on his feet for a few minutes before walking over to another box and pulling out a picture frame.

He handed it to us and pointed to the people in the old picture. "The black haired woman is my mother, Tokaji Saku, and the silver haired man is my father, Hatake Toshio. The taller silver haired boy is my brother, Tsuneo, and I'm the shorter one."

Naru blinked up at Dad curiously. "Your mother didn't carry your father's last name."

"Nope. My mother was a missing-nin from Kumogakure and came to Konoha for asylum, hence the slashed headband. She pissed off a bunch of daimyos there, so they placed a hefty bounty on her head. The Second Hokage welcomed her into the village without much trouble and sent back her headband to Kumo to trick them into thinking she was dead. She had this amazing talent with elemental manipulation, lightning to be specific. The Second would have been stupid to let her go, so all she had to do was change her name into one that wasn't recognizable and then she could live the rest of her days as she wanted. It worked, for a little while at least."

Well, this was news to me. I had never heard about this family history before, it was kind of exciting. "What happened?"

"Mom met Dad, but since he was from a minor clan and she was a missing-nin the clan laws back then stated they couldn't get married. My grandparents weren't too high-strung about it, but a law was a law so my parents had to find a way around it if they wanted to be together. Dad moved from his clan home to live with my mother. My brother and I were eventually born and we lived a fairly charmed life, until Mom was recognized by a Kumogakure daimyo during my chunin exam. The entire Kumo alliance was in trouble at that point and war was the only option if Mom didn't do anything. So Mom did the only thing she could think of, she went back to Kumo and was executed for crimes against the kage."

Naru and I gasped as he continued. "Dad was devastated, but he was a strong man and continued living for me and my brother." The tone of Dad's voice grew darker and sadder as he sighed and gripped the fabric of the headband. "As a souvenir, they sent back her headband to my father. It nearly killed him to receive that package. To this day I'm forbidden entrance into Kumo because of the anger surrounding my mother's defection."

Dad sighed and tried to give us a smile, but once more it didn't even reach his eyes. I had a feeling his story was about to get even more depressing. "Then my brother caught diphtheria and slowly died because the medic-nins thought he had the flu and never even guessed it was a bacterium. Tsuneo was such an unlucky child, bright, but unlucky. He caught it right at the height of flu season and no one in the village had seen a case in over ten years. So, of course, they suspected flu before anything else. My brother's death killed my Dad. He didn't last long after that before he withered away."

"So I was left alone from that point. I was about thirteen by the time all of my family was dead. I focused everything on training. I put everything into making a legacy." He sighed and placed the headband and picture frame back into the cardboard box. "Now, why don't you two go downstairs and clean yourselves up. I've already sent a clone to the store so we can fix a snack once they get back."

As much as I wanted to, I didn't question Dad as he pushed us towards the attic door. I wanted to know what was in those envelopes, but his knuckles were white where he was gripping the journal. I didn't know if asking would set him off or not.

I don't know why, but I had a feeling we were standing at a crossroads. Something was going to heal or break today. If only I could figure out what it was.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Sakumo waited until he was sure the kids were downstairs before heading into his own room and firmly shutting the door. His heart was pounding loudly in his ear and he hoped his face wasn't giving away the torrent of emotions he was feeling. It was a complete shock to his system to see his Nozomi's things, things he hadn't seen since the day he boxed them up and put them in the attic.

After taking a deep breath, Sakumo sat down in the middle of his bed and looked at the three items in his hands. One was the leather bound journal and the other two were envelopes containing letters. One was addressed to Sakumo and one was addressed to Kakashi. From the slanted, yet shaky writing, Sakumo knew it was most likely Nozomi's written goodbyes to them.

A part of his heart couldn't bear the thought of reading whatever she wrote because it wasn't fair that he lost her so soon. It wasn't fair that he couldn't forget her no matter how hard he tried. Fate just wasn't fair to Sakumo.

For a while, Sakumo sat staring at the journal before thumbing through it and seeing Nozomi excitedly describe normal pregnancy occurrences and everyday life. Everything from the first time she felt Kakashi kick to the emotional rollercoaster she experienced the entire nine months. Sakumo could feel the salty water building up in his eyes, but he held them back with firm hand. He tossed the journal on the end of the bed before turning his attention to the yellowed envelope bearing his name.

With a watery sigh and a slightly shaking hand, Sakumo grasped the letter and slowly opened it. The initial shock of the first few written lines, in handwriting so familiar to his eyes, brought up another swell of emotion that he wasn't able to squash down in time. A choked sob echoed off the walls as he began reading.

 _To my dearest Sakumo,_

 _You're sleeping beside me as I write my goodbye letter to you. The moon is pregnant in the sky and the stars twinkle mockingly through the window. It's beautiful, but doesn't compare to watching you sleep during the early hours of the morning. I love these hours the most. You look so carefree and regretless in the moonlight. Not laden with the burdens of daylight and not riddled with worry._

 _I'm almost fearful that you'll wake up while I write this, but you've been so tired lately that I don't think I have to worry about that. Even though you look so peaceful beside me, I can see the exhaustion in your form. Also, I've scratched my pen against the paper a few times by accident and I know if you were well rested then the sound and smell would have woken you up by now. It doesn't look like you're waking up until you absolutely have to._

 _Your breathing is even and deep, but your mouth is set in a small smile. Your eyelids flutter rapidly and highlight those black circles underneath your eyes as you dream. I can't help but wonder what you're dreaming of. Are you dreaming of a sudden miracle for me? Perhaps just a few more days or years added onto my life? Are you dreaming of what could have been if I hadn't have fallen ill? Then again, knowing you as well as I do, I'm sure you're dreaming about finally cracking my secret brownie recipe. I do admit to being a little iffy on that last one, you're not drooling in your sleep, so maybe my brownies aren't gracing your dreamland tonight._

 _I'll try to keep the jokes at a minimum tonight, because I know how upset you get whenever I joke about my condition. I know you don't find it funny and baby, I don't find it funny either, but I'm scared. So very scared of leaving you and Kakashi behind. It's not fair and I sometimes wonder what I did to deserve the hand life dealt me. In my darkest moments, I wish I were strong enough to take my own life just to grant you freedom. With all that said, I'm glad that I'm scared. Being scared means that I've loved enough to want to stay in this world. Oh Sakumo, how I have loved!_

 _I regret a few things in my life, but I know that I'll never regret loving you and our son. I'll never forget the memories we made or regret the life I've lived. I want to die with those memories flashing before my eyes just to see that happiness one more time. I'm happy with the life I've lived and if the gods above see it fit to take my life, then perhaps it's for the best. I may just be a part of a bigger, grander plan._

 _I'm sure you won't read this until years after I'm gone. That's okay sweetheart. I know how much pain you're going to feel after I'm gone. I know the loneliness inside your heart won't be cured by time alone, but I hope by the end of this letter that you'll finally be able to let go. I wish I could take away that pain and loneliness right now, but I can't. You're a strong man, Sakumo, a good man, and I know you'll live on after I'm gone. You'll live for our son and eventually you'll find the strength to truly smile for him._

 _Teach him, Sakumo. Teach him to be the person I wanted him to be. Show him the things I'm not going to get to show him. Love him the way I loved him. Raise him up and raise him well. If I were a shinobi, I would be entrusting my Will of Fire to you. I know you're smiling as you read this and are remembering the multiple times you tried explaining exactly what that meant to me. I still don't fully understand it and perhaps I never will, but sitting here thinking over the past few months has enlightened me a little bit. I think I finally realize that the Will of Fire is so much more than just determination and will. It's the hopes and dreams of the parents. It's my hopes and dreams passed down to my son._

 _With that said, I don't worry about you two. I have a feeling you'll be just fine by yourselves. Just live well._

 _I love you, so very much. Please don't dwell on my death. Mourn and cry, but don't let my memory cling to your skin forever. Clean out our closet and take my clothes to someone that'll need them. I certainly won't need them where I'm going. Remove my make-up and perfume from the bathroom drawers. Don't let my things dwell in this place just because you don't think you'll be able to fully let me go. It's not fair to you or Kakashi. I want him to know his mother by her character, not by the things his father couldn't bear to part with._

 _Sakumo, you're too handsome and loving to remain single. You were meant to be a father and perhaps if I wouldn't have been sick we could have had another child. Don't put off love because you feel like it's a betrayal of my memory. I want you to fall in love again, get married, and have more children. Nowhere is it written that you're only allowed one true love and I don't expect you to suddenly turn celibate just because you're a widower. I want you to be happy._

 _When you do remarry, and I strongly hope you do, please move our family picture off of the bedside table. Sweetheart, leaving it there would be weird and awkward for whoever comes after me. Never make her feel like she has to live up to my memory. I'm not a grand, smart, talented, or even beautiful person. I'm simply Nozomi. Love her as you loved me. Never let her feel like the other wife and never allow Kakashi to treat her as anything besides his mother. He's gonna need one of those since I'm not going to be here much longer._

 _You're beginning to wake up beside me, so my time to write has drawn to an end. Go on, baby; let it all out. From this point on, grieve no more for me. Now, dry those tears, Sakumo, and heal. I'll always be with you in spirit. My love will never die for you. I'll be waiting patiently for you._

 _With love,_

 _Nozomi_

Sakumo let the tear splattered letter fall to the bed as his chest heaved violently. All of those old wounds were ripped open for the final time as he took in her words, so honest and so heartbreaking. For a few miserable minutes, all Sakumo could do was think about everything he lost and would never have back. In a slight daze, he walked over to his closet and randomly pulled out one of the shirts hanging there, one that used to smell like his sweet Nozomi. In surprised anguish, Sakumo realized he couldn't smell her scent on the clothes anymore. His nose couldn't catch the faint whiff of flour and cinnamon that used to cling to her clothes and skin.

He dropped the offending shirt and slowly slid down the wall to rest against the floor. His chakra and emotions flared dangerously as he remembered the weeks following Nozomi's death. She died in her sleep beside him and after her body was removed, in the only form of mourning he allowed himself, Sakumo burned down the bed. Right in the middle of the bedroom. In fact, there were scorch marks on the wooden floor underneath the current bed. That bed was like their entire time together molded into physical form. That was their marriage bed, the bed Kakashi was conceived in, the bed where so much love was made, and Sakumo burned it to the ground.

He could vividly remember the pitying looks at Nozomi's funeral and the quiet offers to watch Kakashi for a few days. Little Kakashi had spent the entire funeral napping in Sakumo's arms and only woke up long enough to ask for his Momma. It nearly killed Sakumo to hear his young son cry because Nozomi wasn't there. Kakashi cried the most heart wrenching tears for his mother, but Sakumo's eyes remained dry. Even after Sakumo trained himself into numbness later that day, his tears refused to fall.

Sakumo remembered spending the next month walking around like a robot. His actions were mechanic and had no emotion behind them. He stopped smiling and playing with Kakashi. He simply detached himself from the pain he felt and squashed it down deep inside his heart. He buried Nozomi's stuff upstairs, only keeping the clothes that smelled so much like her. When she died, a piece of him went with her. When she died, his hopes and dreams burned faster than their bed.

Over time, it got easier to live without her, but it wasn't the same. He eventually found solace in raising Kakashi, but without Nozomi he second-guessed every single decision he made. Sakumo even found himself relearning how to smile at his toddler son and how to laugh with the innocent babe. He played his part well and buried his grief for Nozomi deep down, deep enough where it would never affect him again. So he lived and acted for his friends and family. No one ever suspected a thing, except for his two closest friends, Jiraiya and Minato. Even his son never suspected the deep festering wound of grief fizzling just below the surface of his father's skin.

Nozomi's letter broke something inside of Sakumo. It broke the last string holding his grief down and all at once the years of repressed emotions erupted in a violent monsoon in the middle of Sakumo's chest. It hurt to breathe, it hurt to think, it hurt to do anything but feel.

Even though his entire body was shaking and his breathing was erratic, Sakumo picked himself up and walked over to his bed. One look at the family picture on the bedside table sent him into a convulsion of dry sobs. Everything was finally hitting home for Sakumo.

His wife was dead and never coming back.

His scream was barely muffled by his pillows as he shouted the injustice of it all to the heavens, finally grieving like he was supposed to do all those many years ago. For the longest time Sakumo wept in hot anguish, until his body could give no more. Tears refused to fall from his eyes; his head pounded with each labored breath, and his throat was scratchy and raw from screaming. His normally steady hands were shaking worse than during his alcohol withdrawals and his entire body seemed heavy with lead.

As Sakumo managed to pull the cover over him, the last few sentences of the letter flashed before his eyes. Hell, he could almost hear his wife whisper them into his ear.

 _From this point on, grieve no more for me. Now, dry those tears Sakumo and heal._

As his eyes began to get heavy, Sakumo did the smartest thing any man could ever do. He decided to listen to his wife. He wasn't going to walk around half healed any longer. He was finally ready to heal and live.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

We were petrified.

It's a natural reaction whenever someone as strong as Dad lets off the amount of killing intent and charka as he did. I felt pinned to the floor as he battled upstairs with one of his mental demons. That was the only thing it could have been. No one else was in the house, so it had to be something to do with that journal and letters.

For the longest time we didn't move. The sun slowly set and beautiful oranges and red enveloped the front porch, but we didn't move from our spots. Honestly, we were too afraid of what we would find if we went upstairs. Dad's chakra was steady now and a whole lot lighter than I've ever felt it. Something had changed.

Naru looked pale as she pointed upstairs. "You go check on Sensei. I'm going to make myself scarce for a little while. It sounds like you two need to be alone tonight."

I nodded quietly as Naru whistled softly for Aki. Once the black and white dog was beside her, she patted her head and pointed to the door. Moments later they were out the door, leaving me with a short 'good luck' and meaningful push upstairs. I hesitantly took the stairs one at a time. I almost dreaded what I was going to find in Dad's room.

"Dad?"

He didn't answer, so I pushed the door open to see him sleeping, curled slightly on his side. The room was mostly undamaged, save for a few feminine clothes scattered across the floor. I went to retreat from the room only to see him open one eye and smile slowly at me.

"Turn the light out, Kakashi, and come get in the bed."

A part of me wanted to argue that I was too old to sleep in the bed with him, but there was something in his aura that screamed out at me. I did as he asked and slowly slid into the bed, instantly finding a comfortable position and feeling my body grow heavy with sleep. Just as I drifted into the land of dreams, I could distinctly feel Dad pressing a soft kiss against my forehead, whispering an even softer 'I love you.'

* * *

"Wakey, wakey, Ka-chan! I've got tamagoyaki ready downstairs."

I opened a single eye to see a much younger looking Dad happily humming as he tried to shake me awake. He must be in a good mood if he cooked Tamagoyaki. He rarely cooked rolled omelets. In fact, I couldn't remember him cooking them in the last few years.

"What time is it?"

"About seven thirty in the morning."

Oh hell no, that was way too early to get up. "I'm going back to sleep."

Just as I went to pull the covers back over my head, Dad grabbed them and yanked them off. "Up, now. We've got a lot of stuff to do today."

"Like what?"

Something passed over Dad's eyes as he looked up and grinned towards the ceiling. "We're going to clean the attic."

* * *

Cleaning the attic ended up being codename for 'going through old memories and hearing about people I've never met before.' Dad seemed almost lighthearted the entire morning as he talked about his childhood and retold boyhood adventures with his older brother, the uncle I never got to meet. Even when he eventually started talking about my mom, he didn't have a shadow over his eyes.

Eventually we left the attic with a few framed pictures, some of mom's antiques that were stored in her hope chest, and the box full of lightning jutsu. I'll admit that I was more excited for the latter than all the other stuff put together.

By lunchtime, Dad had already gone around the house placing pictures in some available spots. The picture of his parents was placed in the livingroom, right beside our family picture. Everything felt like it was falling into place. Naru, who really had made herself scarce because I hadn't seen her all day, only smiled and gave me a look that promised she'd grill me over everything later.

"Kakashi, come here. I've got something for you."

Dad was sitting in the living room with a yellowed envelope gripped gently in his hands. My name in an unfamiliar handwriting stretched across the front. Dad placed it gently in my hands and walked away. His footsteps were light and barely echoed as he walked down the hall to his den.

I opened the letter slowly as Naru walked into the room and sat down on the floor with Aki resting against her lap. A part of me wondered if the girl understood this was supposed to be a private moment, but I quickly decided that I didn't care. A part of me needed Naru in there with me anyway. A yellowed and bent card fell out into my lap. I ignored it for the time being, too focused on the words in the letter.

 _To my sweet Kakashi,_

 _Even before the first time I held you in my arms, I knew my heart would swell with love every time I saw you. I carried you inside my body for nine long months and when I finally got to meet you I couldn't have been happier or loved you more. You were my baby, all five pounds and ten ounces of you. The long days of dealing with your overprotective daddy and overfriendly people patting my inflating stomach were worth it the moment you were laid in my arms. No matter what life tells you, never doubt that you were loved because you, my little Ka-chan, were the most loved baby in the entire village._

 _Once upon a time I looked forward to raising you and teaching you about the world around us, but fate isn't as accepting of my dreams. I feel inadequate as a mother because I know I'm not going to be able to be there for you. I lost my parents when I was young, thanks to a band of misfits right outside of Fire Nation. So I understand how it feels to grow up without a mother. It hurts and I wish you wouldn't have to share that fate with me. At least I had my grandparents, but I don't worry about you. Your daddy will raise you well. He'll love you enough to make up for my absence. He'll love you more than you can handle._

 _I want you to live a good life Kakashi. Your daddy likes to think he's not going to put you into the Academy, but after watching you grow these last few months, I know that you'll be a great shinobi. You try so hard to mimic him that I don't see any other path for you other than ninja. You've got his genes, his hair, and his looks, so of course you're going to follow in his footsteps. All I can claim are the dimples and hopefully your common sense. Daddy sometimes has his moments where he over thinks things. Of course, your great-grandfather seemed to think you'd develop my 'smart aleck mouth' because you were such an active baby while I was pregnant._

 _Regardless of what you inherited from me or your father, be your own person. I assume you're going to be a shinobi, but maybe that's not where your heart lies. I'll be proud of you regardless of the career path you take. If you want to be a scholar, study hard. If you want to work be an artisan, then nurture your passion and find a craft. If you want to be a shinobi then be the best you can and serve your Hokage proudly. Dear, even if you wanted to be a beggar on the side of the street I would support you. Just make sure you do it with as much skill and passion as you can. My son may be a beggar, but he's going to be the best beggar in all of Konoha._

 _I hope you're laughing at this. Your laugh was my favorite thing about you when you were a baby. I'll miss it very much and I regret that I won't get to hear it mature as you grow. Now, I've come to the part in my letter where I want to leave behind my motherly wisdom and advice. Don't tell your daddy, he'll laugh at it._

 _Sweetie, never wash white and colored clothes together. I promise you'd rather take the extra time to wash and dry each separately than walk around with pink underwear._

 _Don't eat any dairy product that's been sitting out for a while, upset stomachs aren't pleasant to have._

 _Listen to your daddy. He has your best interests at heart. If he tells you to do something, then do it._

 _Study hard at whatever you do. No one can stop you from reaching your dreams._

 _Respect your elders, even if they are half senile with one foot in the grave. They've been here longer and know exactly how hard life can be._

 _When the time comes for you to date, pick a girl that will make you fall right back in love with her every single morning and night. Someone you'll never grow tired of. Someone that will nurture your love, uplift your dreams, stand beside you in conflict, and care for you in sickness._

 _Never sell yourself short and find your own way. I used to swear I would never tell my children this, but I can't leave it out now. Don't follow the crowd, if all your friends jumped off a bridge would you?_

 _Lastly, love unconditionally. You never know when your last day will be on earth. You never know when sickness could take you or a loved one away. Love like this is the last moment you'll ever see each other._

 _Now, I'm finished harping on you. Smile dear and laugh because I know you'll ignore some of these whenever you become a teenager. I was rebellious once, I remember the nights of sneaking out and back talking to my grandparents. So have your fun, but never forget that mother knows best._

 _It's time for me to go now. Your daddy will soon be home and he doesn't like it when I talk or prepare for my death. He keeps hoping that something will pop up just in time to save the day, but this isn't a fairy tale. It's just my time to leave this world._

 _With that said, I have a special treat for you. One last rib at your daddy and I'm going to need your help, my little partner-in-crime. I'm sure he's mentioned my white chocolate brownies. I swear he loves them more than he loves me. I'm leaving you the brownie recipe. Sakumo would probably kill for this recipe so you have to be sly about this. Don't give it to him; trade him for something good._

 _Perhaps permission to sign the ninken contract?_

 _I know he wants to wait until you're a jounin, if you become one, because he mumbles about it when he thinks I'm not listening. I will warn you, he's downright evil whenever his sweets are mentioned. He'll promise anything and everything with no intentions of giving it up. So, test him. Give him the wrong secret ingredient until he allows you to sign the contract. The secret isn't on the recipe card._

 _Ready for it?_

 _The 'secret ingredient' isn't actually a big secret at all. Usually, the white chocolate pieces are melted down and added into the bowl of ingredients. Our white chocolate is softened ever so slightly and then mashed together. Once the chocolate is soft and lumpy, vanilla and nutmeg (the secret ingredient) is added. Let that soak together for at least thirty minutes. Then follow the rest of the recipe. This way the chocolate gets most of the flavor and literally explodes in your mouth when you bite into the brownie._

 _That, my son, is how you bring the White Fang of Konoha to his knees without ever lifting a weapon. Unless you count whatever you use to mash the chocolate up as one._

 _Good luck, Ka-chan._

 _Remember, I'll always be watching over you and will always love you. Take care of Sakumo and help him through life. If he does remarry, treat her kindly. You need a mother, dear; I don't think I'll be around much longer to be one to you. You'll be fine, though. You are my son after all._

 _With love,_

 _Mom_

She actually gave me the secret ingredient. Dad actually held the thing he desired most in his hands without ever knowing it. Damn, she was sneaky. I'm sure if she lived, we would have gotten along just fine.

I folded the letter up and placed both things into the envelope, not exactly sure how to feel about what I just read. It's not that I don't feel emotionally attached to my mother, but I don't remember her. Everything I know about her is from stuff Dad's told me about or from pictures. The letter's addressed to me, but I feel like it's from a stranger. I'm pretty sure I'm not supposed to feel like that.

I must have looked confused because Naru scooted over beside me and placed a hand upon my knee. I looked down at her and found unusual wisdom shining from those blue depths.

"You know, it's okay that you didn't react like Sensei did."

"She was my mother, Naru, and apparently I could care less. Dad really loved her, but I can't even manage to feel sad."

Naru rolled her eyes as she pulled herself beside me on the couch. "You don't remember her. You were so young when she died that no one can blame you for not remembering her. So it's natural for you to feel at a loss."

"Natural and right aren't the same thing."

Naru deadpanned before shaking her head. "Are you even listening to yourself? That's literally the stupidest thing I've ever heard you say. No, I know exactly what you're doing. You're reverting into that _phase_ again."

"What phase?"

"Surely you've noticed that you have a set pattern when dealing with emotional things. Usually you go right from learning about them to blaming yourself, regardless if you were involved or not."

"I do not."

"Yeah, so spending hours at the memorial stone wasn't blaming yourself."

For a few minutes, white, hot anger boiled in my veins. I was not that predictable. Okay, looking back, maybe I did spend a little more time than I should have at the memorial stone. That doesn't mean I have some twisted form of survivor's guilt. More specifically, I didn't have a _phase_.

"I don't know what you're talking about."

She raised an eyebrow and shrugged. "Sure you don't. One day you'll accept the fact that you're emotionally challenged. You know they say acceptance is the first step to recovery."

"I don't have a problem."

"Okay then, keep telling yourself that. For now, just listen to me. It's not your fault that you don't feel any sadness because of the letter. You don't remember her, Kakashi. That doesn't mean you don't love her any less. It just means that her death isn't as painful. Like I didn't know how to have a father, you don't know how to have a mother. So, Scarecrow, how do you feel?"

I could feel the wisps of a smile spread across my face as I smoothed a wrinkle out in the envelope and thought about Naru's words. "I'm not sure how to feel. I don't feel sad or angry. I feel content. She isn't just some unobtainable person I've only heard about in passing. She was real and she loved me more than life itself."

Naru smiled as she reached over and gave me a one armed hug. "We might get through to you yet."

I playfully pushed Naru away from me. "The best part is that she gave me the secret ingredient to those brownies Dad loves so much."

Naru opened her mouth to giggle, but was interrupted by the sound of Dad stalking into the room with a crazed look across his face. "S-She left you the recipe?"

I looked back at Naru before instantly getting ready to flee. "Run, Naru, run!"

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

Sensei lost track of Kakashi about thirty minutes into our chase.

Well, he let Kakashi think he won. I had a feeling Sensei could easily find his son if he wanted to.

Sensei and I ended up starting the task of returning the dog tags to the unfortunate families. Each time Sensei stepped onto a stoop or front porch, we were met with already knowing faces and wet eyes. One of the hardest things was watching a small child cling to his civilian father as Sensei told the man his wife was dead.

The second hardest thing for me was walking into the Uchiha district after so many years of ignoring their existence in this timeline. I didn't know exactly how to deal with them, especially considering what I remembered of them. I remembered they were missing in our timeline and that Sasuke was the only survivor, but I couldn't remember the exact details. It annoyed the hell out of me because all I could see were little flashes of memory.

The Uchiha clan was definitely one on procedure. We had to be allowed entrance into the gate of the Uchiha complex. Then instead of going directly to the deceased shinobi's house, we had to meet with the clan head and elders. Apparently they needed to be informed of the news even before the immediate family was alerted. The meeting didn't last very long, but I kind of got the feeling I wasn't wanted there. One of the men continuously kept staring at my hair, as if the very color was offending. Stiff, arrogant bastards like him are the reason I kept away from the Uchiha clan.

I zoned in on the conversation long enough to hear Sensei congratulate the clan head, a man called Fugaku, on the birth of his firstborn son. Mentally I was wondering exactly who this baby would end up being. As we aged, we were getting closer to my birth. If I heard Kakashi correctly then I was supposed to be born within the next four years. We didn't have the slightest idea how that would go or even if it would happen. Kakashi was slightly afraid that we had somehow caused a rift in the timeline, but we had no way to prove it if we did. That was something only a supernatural being like Kyuubi could answer, but the fox was strangely quiet.

"Thank you, Sakumo. Itachi's just a baby right now, but I can already tell he's going to be something when he grows up."

The name 'Itachi' instantly chilled me to the bone. Uchiha Itachi, Sasuke's older brother, member of Akatsuki because he killed his family. Oh fuck a dead duck. Why did my memory decide now to rewind itself? I was so much happier living in blissful ignorance.

 _"You can't always live in blissful ignorance or you'll fail your self-appointed mission."_

"Oh shut-up, fur ball. Why have you been quiet for the past couple of weeks?"

Kyuubi was quiet for a little while longer before sighing tiredly. " _I'm tired kit. Something's happening with my chakra and I can't keep the connection up for long._ "

I tried to school my face into a neutral expression at that. I didn't like how this conversation was going. I could almost feel the bad news creeping up behind me.

"What's going on?"

" _I don't know."_

It was so quiet it was almost a whisper before the connection cut off again, leaving me strangely unsettled. For years I wanted the damn fox to shut up and now I actually felt upset that he wasn't talking.

This turn of events was definitely something Kakashi needed to know about.

* * *

Our final stop was also the single most depressing stop, the Namiashi house. Raido's blonde haired mother answered the door only to close it right back in our faces. I could hear the strangled sob coming from underneath the door before shuffling was heard. A few seconds later, a shinobi that looked like an older version of Raido stood at the door with a mournful look across his face. Sensei gently pushed the dog tags into the grieving father's hand before giving his condolences.

I simply looked past the man and saw Raido sitting in an old rocking chair with his face buried in his hands. He looked up long enough to catch my eyes before attempting to give me an encouraging smile. It was faker than the brave face his dad was putting on. I closed my eyes as Sensei gently prodded me to take our leave.

Bringing about sadness wasn't as fun as bringing about happiness.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Across Konoha in a familiar office, a dark haired man sat straight-laced in his chair as one of his Yamanaka spies dug deeply into the mind of the chunin in front of him. Using one of his jutsu creations, the Yamanaka was able to project the chunin's memory for Danzo. He could see every single improvement to Kakashi and Naru's fighting style. Kakashi shone bright, but the sudden burst of red chakra from Naru really caught Danzo's attention. He knew of her bloodlimit, but he hadn't seen it in action. A nasty grin stretched across the man's face as he honed in on her suddenly red eyes.

Now that was different.


	40. Part 2: Chapter 10

**Part 2: Chapter 10**

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

"Do you see him?"

"See who? Where?"

"Him! Right over there!"

"I still don't see who you're talking about."

"Him right _there_! Tall with the silver hair, he's the _one_ Jiraiya-sama _mentioned_."

"Oh! Hatake Sakumo!"

Three voices shushed the loud girl harshly as Sakumo blinked and looked over in their direction. The four did their best to look normal, but the man watched their group a little longer than they would have liked. Obviously he was a little suspicious of them.

The black haired woman pinched the blushing brunette roughly on the fleshy part of her arm. She hissed against the shell of the woman's ear as Sakumo went back to picking out eggplants. "He's the best tracker Konoha has. His skills are amazing and he can literally hear a branch snap underneath an enemy's foot from miles away. Stop talking so loudly or he'll hear you."

The brunette grimaced as she massaged the sore spot on her arm. " _Sorry_. I didn't mean to."

The black haired woman sighed deeply as she pretended to check over the heads of lettuce resting in their stands. "Whether you meant to or not doesn't matter. You heard Jiraiya-sama, he can't find out just yet. He'll refuse if he knows about the situation."

One of the other girls nodded in agreement, her curly brown hair bouncing with each movement of her neck. "He's still in love with his late wife and…"

The final girl, a woman with dark green hair, gushed as she interrupted her friend, "Which is so romantic!"

"Stop interrupting me!" The green haired woman shrunk back as her curly haired female soothed her growing headache by massaging her temple with the tips of her fingers. "Now, where was I before I was rudely interrupted, oh yeah, he's still in love with his late wife and it'll take more than just a pretty face to turn his head."

The brunette sighed loudly as she picked up a bruised apple and threw it into her basket. Bruised apples were good for apple cider and considering apples weren't in season, this was as good as she was going to get. "I can't help but wonder how Hatake-san is going to react to finding out about this ploy. It's actually kind of funny if you think about it. The notorious bathhouse bandit, the Toad Sage Jiraiya, is trying to play matchmaker for one of Konoha's most honorable and eligible bachelors."

Light laughter swelled from the group as they all pictured Jiraiya in full ceremonial kimono sipping tea and discussing the pros and cons of marrying into a merchant family versus a farming family.

"You ladies seem to be having a good time at market."

Astonished and shy gasps went up around the group as Sakumo reached between them to pick up a few carrots and scallions. His bags were filled with a variety of items, but most seemed to be the ingredients for miso soup.

The black haired woman decided to throw caution to the wind as she reached over and plucked one of the less savory scallions from Sakumo's hand. He blinked in shock before she replaced it with another one. With a slight blush across her cheeks, the woman gestured to the slightly brown vegetable.

"Sorry, Hatake-san, but that one wasn't any good. I would hate for you and your son to fall ill over a bad scallion."

Sakumo stuck the scallion into his bag as he bowed slightly to the woman with a grin on his face. "I'm sure one scallion wouldn't have hurt us, but thank you…" The black haired woman noticed him trailing off before she realized she hadn't introduced herself.

"I'm sorry! Where are my manners? I'm Hara Ayaka."

The silver haired man bowed again before glancing over to where the fish were. He threw the ladies one more grin before pointing to the fishmonger. "It's been a pleasure, but I must go see a man about a fish. Good day."

As Sakumo walked away, Ayaka found herself being tugged into an ally. She was so shocked at what she did that she never noticed that it wasn't her squealing and giggling friends tugging her. It wasn't 'til an open palm connected harshly with her face that she was even aware that she was no longer in the market. Pain clouded her mind as tears gathered in her eyes and spilled over the edge of her eyelids.

Pink hair and angry green eyes stood out against the dreary backdrop of the deserted ally. "You bitch. He is mine, so back the fuck off."

Ayaka sniffled once and shook her head. "He is his own person. You don't own him."

The pink haired woman smirked before twirling a strand of hair around her index finger. "Not yet I don't."

Ayaka quickly ran away from Momoko as the pink haired woman walked to the end of the alley and peered out from behind the wall. Her future lover was back in town and the thought thrilled her. She knew she had to move fast or someone else would take her place by his side and she wasn't about to let that happen.

For the past few months Momo had been diligently digging up any information she could on Hatake Nozomi. Everything from the way she dressed to how she used to act in public. Very few people remembered the civilian woman, but thanks to her seemingly dead end at Miki's diner, Momo was able to get in touch with an elderly woman who used to be close friends with the Sasaki family. Thanks to the half-crazed old bat, Momo learned a lot about Nozomi's easygoing temperament and her playful nature.

Her plan was simple. Men tended to be very simple-minded beings, in her honest opinion. They usually stuck with something that was familiar instead of going towards the new and exciting. In other words, Momo was going to dangle something comfortable, something Nozomi-like, in front of Sakumo and watch where it led her. It was cruel and hard to keep up such pretenses, but if she could get Sakumo in deep enough then he wouldn't leave her whenever she finally dropped her faux personality.

Momo grinned as she watched Sakumo walk away from the marketplace with his purchases. She was definitely going to enjoy this hunt and eventual capture.

* * *

"What are you going to do, Kakashi? Sensei seems determined."

Kakashi snorted as he lazily plucked a few dead stems from the flowerbed in front of him. "Determined isn't the word for it." He turned to glance at Naru as she tossed her own debris into the trash bag they had beside them. "I'm hiding right now. He's been left alone for an entire week and I'm sure he's thought up plenty of ways to swindle the recipe off of me."

Naru chuckled as she stroked the petal of the red amaryllis flower in front of her. "Hatake Kakashi is scared of someone enough to go into hiding?"

"You forget, Naru; I'm hiding from my Dad, the White Fang of Konoha." Kakashi gently plucked a few dying vines from one of the barren rose bushes as Naru moved beside him to clip the dead branches off. "We're talking about the same man that changed my diapers when I was a baby. He's got more blackmail material on me than I want to think about."

The blond haired girl frowned slightly as she sat back on her haunches to examine their handiwork. Her garden was something she had really missed while outside of Konoha, almost as much as Kakashi missed Aki. Even though it was winter, Naru couldn't withstand the temptation to go outside and be amongst the sleeping garden. It didn't look so good now, but she suspected it would be beautiful come spring.

While she was gone, her father had put a mission out for a genin team to keep her garden in pristine condition and it looked like they had done a fine job. Her winter flowers, such as the beautiful red amaryllis flower in front of her, looked healthy. Even her dormant spring plants looked healthy, which were good considering the freeze could have killed them.

"Sensei wouldn't do anything to purposely embarrass you, at least not in public. Now away from the public eye, you're pretty much screwed."

Naru dodge as Kakashi tossed a handful of topsoil at her. "Thanks for the vote of confidence, _Fishcake_."

"You're welcome, _Scarecrow_."

" _Hey! Minato? Kushina? You two here?"_

Naru rolled her eyes in annoyance as she recognized the voice making such a ruckus on such a nice afternoon. Kakashi grinned to himself as he peered around the house to see Jiraiya standing on the front step.

"Sensei and Kushina aren't home right now. They went to dinner about an hour ago."

Jiraiya turned and smiled at the younger Hatake. "Really? Well then, you'll just have to do. Come here, Kakashi."

Kakashi threw Naru a look over his shoulder and watched as she shrugged. "Who knows what the pervert wants."

Kakashi stood up and helped Naru up before the duo walked around the side of the house to see Jiraiya impatiently tapping his foot against the ground. "Need something, Jiraiya?"

"Yeah, brat, when was the last time your Dad went on a date with a lovely lady?"

Naru leaned against the side of the house as she surveyed Jiraiya with a wary eye. "What are you up to, Ero-sennin?"

Jiraiya pointedly ignored Naru and turned back to Kakashi. "Well?"

Kakashi shrugged before closing his eyes and thinking back. "It's been years. I can only remember one and I think that was more of a fling than anything else."

Jiraiya nodded as he grinned at the two children in front of him. "So, who's up for helping me set Sakumo up on a date?"

Naru rolled her eyes as she pointed back to the road. "Get out of here. Sensei doesn't have the time for your games."

"No one asked you, brat."

Kakashi ran a hand through his hair as he sighed loudly. "Naru's right Jiraiya, Dad doesn't have time for something like that."

Jiraiya became suddenly serious as he looked Kakashi over. "Doesn't have time or just has a son that doesn't want to share his father?"

Dark eyes narrowed quickly as Kakashi stared Jiraiya down. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"You're a smart boy, take it as it is. Now, are you going to help me or not?"

Naru watched as Kakashi shook his head before storming off. She opened her mouth to call after him, but stopped and turned back to Jiraiya. "I'm going after him. Sensei is happy right now and so is Kakashi, don't mess with that."

Jiraiya placed his hand on Naru's shoulder and sighed, looking suddenly melancholy and somber. "Naru, Sakumo may be happy, but he's not as happy as he was when Nozomi was alive. You and Kakashi aren't enough to make him as happy as he once was. Only love can give him that."

"You're wrong, we love him."

"You two can't love him the way he needs to be loved, though. It's harsh, but Sakumo needs to find his other half once more or he'll be lonely. One day, you and Kakashi are going to leave his house. Then where will that leave him?"

Naru looked down before quickly looking in the direction where Kakashi took off. She bit her lip slightly as she thought about Jiraiya's words. Finally, she looked up and held out a hand. "We'll help. You have to promise me that Kakashi and I get the final say on who meets Sensei."

Jiraiya took her hand and shook it once as his face split into a grin. "Deal. What about Kakashi?"

"I'll talk to him later. When are we starting this endeavor?"

"Soon. I've already sent out the fliers."

Naru rolled her eyes. "If Sensei ever finds out about this, he's going to kill you."

Jiraiya grinned as he turned to walk away. "I plan to use you and Kakashi as bargaining chips if it comes down to that."

* * *

Kakashi didn't go far, only to the other side of the house where he waited for Naru to finish talking to Jiraiya. Since training with his ANBU pain-in-the-ass, Kakashi usually kept a really good cap on his emotions. He had never been one to fly off the handle, but now he was able to handle things in calmer ways than he did before. What Jiraiya said, though, hit something deep in him, causing a rare flare of pure rage inside his chest.

Kakashi only wanted the best for his father and would gladly give him the moon if he asked. The silver haired boy knew his father would do the same for him. He was definitely not jealous as Jiraiya suggested, protective maybe, but not jealous. There really was no telling what Jiraiya would bring through the front door.

"Kakashi?"

He turned and waved at Naru as she walked over beside him and leaned against the house. "I talked to Jiraiya."

"What did he say?"

"I think he's got a good idea."

Kakashi quickly looked up at Naru and scrutinized her. "How so?"

"He just said some things about Sensei that are true and I think as long as we're there to keep him in check then it won't be that bad."

"It feels like we're whoring him out or something."

Naru coughed to hide her laughter before slinging an arm around Kakashi's shoulders. "We're not whoring him out. We're trying to make sure he's happy."

The silver haired boy sighed deeply as he maneuvered out from under Naru's arm. "Fine, but if I don't like her, we've got to do everything in our power to chase her off."

Naru nodded her head once as her smile grew wider. "You got it! So now what do we do?"

"We wait for Dad to decide he's ready to start torturing me again."

* * *

An entire week has passed since Kakashi and Naru decided they were going to team up with Jiraiya. Shortly after Jiraiya introduced the first candidates to the kids, Sakumo decided he was ready to see his son again and try out his newest attempt at getting that brownie recipe.

The older Hatake hadn't been in the same room with his son since the day he found out that the younger had the recipe to Nozomi's white chocolate brownies. It was pure torture for Sakumo to know the most delicious things on the face of the earth was less than inches away from him and he couldn't have them. That naughty desire to have those brownies brought out an evil side in Sakumo, one usually only reserved for the battlefield.

Nozomi didn't lie when she warned Kakashi about Sakumo's vindictive nature when it came to his sweets. So far Sakumo had tried everything short of having his son arrested in order to find that recipe. Secretly he would have had that one done too, if he could have somehow swallowed down his affection for his son. He even went as far as to meticulously search every inch of his son's room, looking for any sign of the letter or the recipe card, only to come up empty every time. Finally, Sakumo remembered that his son was a genius and tried to use good old fear and intimidation. That didn't work either.

Not one to allow himself to be defeated, Sakumo tried a different approach. An approach reserved for the most delicate of cases. He was going to butter his son up and snatch the recipe when the boy wasn't looking. All he needed was Kakashi's favorite meal, a sob story, and one of the T&I division's specialty jutsu. It was a diabolical plan, one that made Sakumo question his morals, but it was also the easiest plan he could come up with.

There was only one problem with his plan and that was the market itself.

Usually Sakumo didn't mind going to the market. In fact, he kind of liked it, but lately his trips to the market were riddled with blushing women and giggling teenage girls. A part of him wondered if he had forgotten to dress himself properly or maybe Naru and Kakashi played another prank on him with his hair color. He checked both as discreetly as he could, but found nothing there.

It was simply frustrating. Even more frustrating than not having those brownies.

Once his laughter riddled market trip was over, Sakumo returned home with just enough time to cook a meal and send Shiri over to drag Kakashi home. Unfortunately, the two were followed by a stray; Jiraiya himself.

The white haired man watched in glee as Sakumo and Kakashi stared each other down from across the kitchen table. It was almost like watching one of those old samurai duels.

Sakumo rested his elbows against the table with his chin on top of his folded hands.

"Hello, Kakashi."

Kakashi arched an eyebrow at the man as he rested his hands beside his bowl of miso soup.

"Hello, Father."

Sakumo didn't even flinch at the cool tone Kakashi used. He was determined to win this stare down. Both Hatake men picked up their chopsticks and snagged a piece of eggplant from their respective bowls. Ever so slowly they stared in tense silence as they chewed on the purple vegetable. Kakashi pointed into his bowl with his chopsticks and twirled the long noodles around them.

"This is good."

Sakumo nodded as he lifted a chopped carrot up from the soupy mixture.

"I know. I made it."

"No need to be conceited."

"No need to be cheeky."

The rest of the meal was eaten in relative silence except for the clink of bowls and the slight chuckles coming from Jiraiya's end of the table. Sakumo tried to ignore the subtle glares his son kept sending Jiraiya's way, but he couldn't help but wonder what the other man had done this time. The silence was broken completely a few minutes later when Jiraiya loudly slurped his soup and dropped his bowl to the table with a loud clang.

"As funny as this is, I've got business to attend to with you, Sakumo."

Sakumo rested his chopsticks across the top of his bowl as he quirked an eyebrow at Jiraiya. "What kind of business?"

Without a single glance at Kakashi or a hint of remorse, Jiraiya blurted out his answer. "The business of getting you laid."

" _Jiraiya!"_

Kakashi hid his face behind his hands and shook his head in disbelief. "Way to be subtle, Jiraiya."

Jiraiya shrugged nonchalantly at the hissing Sakumo was doing from his end of the table. If looks could kill, Jiraiya would have been dead three times over.

"Oh cut it out, Sakumo. The kid's almost eleven; it's time for him to get _the talk_ anyway. "

"Then it will be at my discretion when he receives it. I've already seen how you've scarred Minato for life."

As Sakumo glared daggers, Jiraiya just shrugged and pointed to Kakashi. If the entire thing hadn't have been staged, then Kakashi was sure he would have laughed at the overdramatic pose the man was doing. "Kid, your dad here has been alone way too long to be healthy. I mean, he's got to get some kind of lovin' besides his han…"

" _Out Jiraiya! Get out!"_

"Sakumo, it's okay! One day, he too will join the masses of horny men."

Sakumo didn't give Jiraiya another chance to speak. The man was being dragged outside the door before he could open his mouth again. Through the front door, Sakumo could still hear him cackling happily and bellowing about some flyer he set up.

" _Don't worry, Sakumo! I've got you taken care of!"_

Sakumo buried his face into his hands and hoped to the gods above that Jiraiya was bluffing. Of course, knowing Jiraiya as well as he did, he knew the other man wasn't. Sakumo walked back into the kitchen to find Kakashi frozen in his seat with a look of pure horror on his unmasked face. The hand wrapped around his chopstick twitched twice before stilling. Sakumo simply patted his son's head before walking out of the room. Maybe if he ignored it long enough, they could pretend it never happened.

Sakumo's eyes widened slightly as he realized that this could be the perfect opportunity to catch his son unaware.

Was it mean to try and take advantage of his son in his current state? Yes.

Did Sakumo care? No.

He really wanted those brownies.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

Well, that went just about as well as expected. I had the sudden desire to bleach my brain, but Jiraiya kind of told Dad about his dating lottery, as Naru affectionately called it. Dad was going to kill Jiraiya whenever he found out that he'd been 'interviewing' potential dates for about a week now.

I don't even want to think about what he does during these 'interviews.'

I knew I should have just stayed at Sensei's place and never agreed to being a part of this. I should have just let Jiraiya and Naru handle this, but no, I had to stick my nose into it too. It was much safer for my sanity whenever I wasn't tangled up in their schemes. Not only did I have to worry about Dad killing me in my sleep over this recipe, now I had to worry about him killing all of us over this dating thing. All thanks to Jiraiya. One day, I'll get him back for this. For now, I'm going to clean my brain out.

"Kakashi, can you come here for a moment?"

Maybe it was my lack of sanity at that moment or maybe I was weakened from the mental images that still assaulted my brain, whatever it was weakened my better judgment. I went directly to him.

I quickly found him sitting in the living room with a gloomy look across his face. I should have been on alert, especially considering he's been trying to get this recipe all week. I wasn't, though, and walked right over to him.

"Yeah?"

Dad looked down and swallowed dramatically, "This is silly of us. We shouldn't be acting like this. Your mother would be disappointed."

Damn, he was using the mother tactic. Now I knew something was up. I went with it, though, and lowered my eyes as I nodded in agreement. "You're right."

"So, you're agreeing with me? Does this mean I can have the secret ingredient?"

My mother's words rang through my mind as I concealed a grin. Maybe getting into this wasn't as bad of an idea as I originally thought it would be. If he wanted the secret ingredient, then I wanted the ninken contract. "On one condition. I get to sign the summoning contract."

"No."

I blinked before looking over in shock at Dad. His face was unusually serious as he frowned and shook his head. I couldn't keep the whine out of my voice at hearing his immediate rejection. "Why not?"

Dad sighed as he rubbed a hand across his eyes. "You're too young, Kakashi."

"Bullshit. I'm old enough to kill, but not old enough to sign the summoning contract?"

"Watch your language. I have my reasons for not letting you sign right now."

He might have his reasons, but that didn't mean I had to like them. I missed my ninken. It felt like a part of me was missing without them. Sad thing is, I couldn't remember their names, but I remembered how it felt to be with them. I remembered only having them for a long time. They were my family, my only family at one time, and I wanted them back.

"I don't see why I can't sign the contract."

Dad sighed as he reached over and pulled me into a hug. "Why do all little boys try so hard to grow up before their time?"

Something in the way he said that angered me. I pushed him away and turned to go upstairs, but not before looking back at Dad. "Why do you insist on treating me as a child in some aspects and an adult in others?"

With that said I ventured upstairs and didn't look back at him. As I lay down on my bed, a part of me realized that was the first time in a long time that I'd gotten angry at him. This was the first time since his attempted suicide that I hadn't walked on eggshells around him. It was also the first time since I was younger that I smarted-off to him. I should have been ashamed, but I wasn't. He deserved it this time.

As I was lying there, a knock sounded from the door. "Kakashi? Can I come in?"

I didn't answer, only turned away from the door as he opened it and stepped inside. I know I was being unusually moody, but it was justified at the time. "Need something, Dad?"

"To talk to you."

"Talk then."

He sat down on the edge of the bed and patted my knee. "Hey, look at me." I did as he asked and tried to ignore the amusement in his eyes. "You didn't let me finish before you threw a hissy fit."

"I did _not_ throw a hissy fit."

The amusement in his eyes grew as he patted my knee again. "Sure you didn't, but the fact still stands that you didn't wait for me to finish."

"I thought what you said was pretty final. I understand what the word 'no' means."

"Kakashi."

I looked up at him and saw that disappointed frown again. "Yes?"

"Stop talking and listen to me. You don't have the time to raise ninken at this point in time. We're only on leave for a few months. That's not long enough to finish the training and bonding you and your ninken are going to need in order to be an effective team. It would be a waste if I let you sign the contract and then you never got to train with your ninken."

Begrudgingly, I admitted that he was right. Flashes of memories assaulted my mind as I barely made out the scene of a much older me taking care of a brown little pug. Dad was right. Ninken were raised by their summoners from puppyhood or the bond wouldn't be as strong. It was a lot like the Inuzuka clan and their canine companions.

I sighed in defeat as he chuckled quietly. "Fine."

Dad reached over and ruffled my hair as he made to stand up. "See, we're both not getting what we want. I don't have the secret ingredient and you don't have the ninken contract."

It may have been childish pettiness that propelled me to do it, but at the moment, I didn't care. He had tried to play dirty earlier, so I was going to play even dirtier.

"Do you want the ingredient?"

He stopped and I knew I had him at that moment. "Giving me the ingredient won't get you the ninken contract, you know that right?"

I nodded my head, hoping that my face was schooled into the image of innocence since my mask was down. It was time to lay it on thick. "I understand that, but consider it a belated birthday present." I lowered my eyes and bit the inside of my cheek hard enough to bring tears to my eyes. "I know how much they mean to you and I just want you to be happy."

Hook, line, and sinker. He bought it completely.

"Thanks Ka-chan, I'm glad you made this decision without me having to trick it out of you."

I smiled at him as he patiently waited for the ingredient. "No problem Dad! Mom said the secret ingredient was Cumin."

He didn't look like he bought my story at first and I got a little nervous whenever he took a step towards me. "Cumin? That's an unusual ingredient for something so sweet. Usually cumin is very peppery."

I shrugged at his questions, "that's what she said. She also said to use a lot of it."

Dad shrugged before his face turned from confusion to excitement. "Okay! I'll be right back! I'm going to get the ingredients!"

"Don't you need the entire recipe?"

From downstairs I could hear Dad yell back. "No, I know everything but the secret ingredient!"

The door slammed shut a few minutes later and I couldn't help but collapsing into laughter. Poor Dad, he was definitely going to get a surprise whenever he bit into those brownies.

* * *

( **Narrator POV)**

A little over two hours later, Sakumo impatiently took his white chocolate brownies out of the oven. Excitement was all the shinobi felt as he sat the baking pan on the top of the stove to let them cool. A part of him was willing to burn his mouth and tongue just so he could taste the brownies once more. He waited, though, his rational mind winning out against his impulsive urges. His reserve didn't last as long as it usually does, though.

Kakashi slyly made his way downstairs and watched from the doorway as Sakumo impatiently cut into the brownies with a knife. It didn't take long for the man to shove the brownie into his mouth, only to spit it right back out into the sink. The silver haired boy in the shadows tried to control his laughter, but Sakumo heard him anyway. Anger was the first thing to cross Sakumo's mind, but he stopped and looked back at his laughing son.

Kakashi laughed so little these days that seeing him like that struck something deep in Sakumo. It wasn't long before he started laughing as well. Of course, he was planning his revenge the entire time, but he was still laughing.

Finally bringing himself under control, Sakumo leaned back against the counter and glared at Kakashi. "That was cruel."

His laughing giving away to light giggles, Kakashi grinned back at Sakumo as he made to retreat from the doorway. "Maybe, but it was funny and you totally deserved it, old man."

"I'll get you back for this, _little one_ , don't you worry."

"What have we said about the short jokes? You're going to give me a complex."

Sakumo turned to toss his hard work into the trash, mourning the loss of the beautiful, but disgusting brownies. "I'll give you a complex if you do something like this again."

Kakashi grinned before disappearing upstairs, leaving Sakumo to sit in the kitchen without his delicious brownies. As he sat there, though, a deliciously evil plan entered his mind. If Kakashi wanted to play with fire, well then, Sakumo could play with fire too.

"You better get some sleep tonight, Ka-chan, 'cause tomorrow you're in for a world of pain."

* * *

 **(Kakashi)**

I should have seen this coming. Dad has never been one to hold grudges, but he wasn't above _playful_ revenge taking, which is probably why I'm currently hiding in one of the taller trees in the training grounds at five o'clock in the morning while Dad's out there looking for me.

Harmless game of prey. Yeah, right.

"Oh, Ka-ka-shi! Hiding in the same tree isn't going to make you harder to find, in fact, it makes you a sitting duck."

I quickly turned and grin at him as I fingered the smoke bomb in my pocket. "Or it could be a cleverly disguised trap to lure you close to me."

I threw the smoke bomb at his feet and jumped down from the tree. I almost got away too, if I wouldn't have forgotten about the ninken. Damn ninken being so damn loyal to Dad.

Their growling faces were enough to cause me to step backwards and right into Dad's clutches. There was no point in fighting him since my arms were pinned to my side and kicking wasn't going to do anything but piss him off.

"You lasted an hour-and-a-half against me and the ninken. That's a whole lot better than last time."

"Is that supposed to make me feel better?"

Dad shook his head before dropping me to the ground. "Nope. Now, come on, we've got some training to do. Two hundred squats, two hundred push-ups and two laps around Konoha. Sounds like a good warm up, right?"

Just kill me now.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I didn't see Sensei or Kakashi for most of the next week.

In fact, whenever I did see Kakashi he looked like he had seen better days. Sensei looked positively pleased with himself, but Kakashi, well, Kakashi just looked bad.

"You look like shit."

He didn't answer me, only glared and collapsed onto the couch in the living room. I was back at Sensei's house, walking in on your dad and his girlfriend while they _played_ in the living room was enough to send anybody packing. I don't think they saw me, but I saw enough of them to last a lifetime.

"Mhhmhmmhh."

Kakashi was so tired that he didn't even lift his head off of the couch to talk to me. A part of me wanted to humor him and just pretend I understood, but last time I did that caused me more trouble than it was worth.

"What did you say?"

I watched as Kakashi gingerly turned his head and looked up at me. "I said, thank you, captain obvious."

Holding back my chuckles, I quietly sat on the edge of the couch and gently massaged the back of Kakashi's head. His hair was so filthy that I had to ignore the clumps of dirt and stray twigs. His skin looked like it hadn't been cleaned in days and he smelled rather badly.

"Hey now, be nice. I'm not the reason you're like this."

"No, but my mother is. I should have never listened to her. Give him a fake ingredient, she said. Trade him for the ninken contract, she said. I did and all I ended up getting was chased around Konoha for four days straight."

I tried to muffle my laughter, but from the half-hearted glare Kakashi sent my way I could tell he heard. "In your mother's defense, she did tell you that Sensei would be heartless."

Kakashi didn't answer, just hid his face back into the cushion of the couch.

"Okay, get up Kakashi and take a shower before Sensei pops up. I'll stall him as much as I can."

He didn't need telling twice, before I knew it he was up the stairs and the sound of running water slowly trickled downstairs. With him gone, I was finally able to quietly chuckle to myself at the newest predicament Kakashi landed himself in.

"Hey, Naru, seen Kakashi lately?"

I looked up and saw Sensei grinning from the open door. "Sensei, at least let him finish his shower."

"I think I'll surprise him once he gets out."

I tried to block his way, but the sudden knocking on the door behind him captured both of our attentions. I raised an eyebrow at the door before looking back over at Sensei.

"Are you expecting company?"

He shook his head as he looked towards the closed door with squinted eyes. "I don't recognize the chakra either and it's definitely not a ninja. Chakra's too untamed."

Another knock banged on the door, prompting Sensei to walk over and see who was interrupting his 'revenge getting' time. A woman stood at the door with a smile on her face and a blush on her cheeks that matched the red dress she was wearing. Sensei looked slightly confused as the brunette before him giggled and batted her unnaturally long eyelashes at him.

"Can I help you?"

The woman giggled again before bowing slightly. I tried to hold back my snort as she nearly toppled over unable to keep her balance in those four-inch high heels she was wearing. Once she managed to compose herself, she turned pretty blue eyes onto Sensei and smiled.

"Jiraiya sent me."

Oh damn. The pervert started early. I'm going to kill him. He promised that he would warn us before he began sending dates over. I took one hard look at the girl and mentally seethed. The damn pervert was also sending over a girl Kakashi and I hadn't even seen yet. The man was dead.

"What did he send you for?"

The woman giggled again before actually placing a well-manicured hand on Sensei's right bicep.

"Silly, surely you know."

Sensei took a slight step backwards before gently removing the hand from his arm. "I assure you, I don't. I apologize for whatever the man told you, but I have nothing for you. Have a good day."

The woman flailed her arms slightly before pointing in my direction. "Tell him! Jiraiya said the blonde haired girl knew and would help me! Tell him about our date!"

Sensei looked between us as I tried to deny the woman's accusation, but she only got louder and more obnoxious.

"Okay, okay, calm down. Go outside and give me a minute."

The woman stopped fighting and slid right back into her perfect grin. "I knew this was all just a misunderstanding." She turned to Sensei and batted her eyes. "Come with me, Hatake-san?"

Sensei opened his mouth to speak, only to be cut off when the woman tugged him outside. He sent me a withering glare before the door closed on him. Jiraiya just better hope that glare didn't mean I was getting a game of prey or he'd be in for a world of trouble.

I didn't waste any time and raced up the stairs. Looking back, this probably wasn't the brightest move I'd ever made, but I banged on the door once before barging in. Luckily for me, Kakashi was still in the shower. I quickly closed my eyes and went right back into what I was doing.

"Kakashi!"

I could hear the sound of a bottle being dropped and the creak of the water being turned off.

"Naru! I'm in the shower!"

"Yeah, I'm aware of that, but it doesn't matter right now. We've got a situation."

He was silent for a few minutes. The only sounds I could hear were the rustling of his towel and the sound of wet feet hitting the floor. This was such an awkward situation.

"It couldn't wait long enough for me to get out of the shower?"

I shook my head. "Nope, it's urgent."

Kakashi sighed deeply. "Okay, go on and you can open your eyes now."

I did as he asked and luckily found him clothed, though the clothes were damp from where he didn't dry himself off. "Jiraiya sent lady number one over here."

"Dammit. At least tell me she's that nice one that runs the tomato stand in the market."

I shook my head. "Nope, I'm pretty sure he got this one off of a corner somewhere. She's positively vile, Kakashi."

Kakashi motioned for me to follow him as he took off down the stairs and onto the front porch. Sensei was doing his best to placate the woman attempting to become a permanent fixture to his side. Kakashi looked the woman up and down as he crossed his arms and addressed her.

"Jiraiya sent you?"

She batted her eyes at him as she reached forward and tried to pinch his masked cheeks. "Aren't you just adorable?"

Kakashi stepped back as he coldly stared the woman down. "I know Jiraiya didn't send you here."

Confusion and a slight tinge of anger ran across the woman's face as she blinked at Kakashi's statement. It was then that I realized the pervert hadn't sent her at all. I remembered her at that moment. She was the one Jiraiya himself rejected, Irie, the only Happy Endings masseuse in all of Konoha.

Sensei looked very confused as he stared back and forth between Irie and Kakashi. "What's going on here, Kakashi?"

Kakashi glared at the woman as he turned his attention to Sensei. "Jiraiya was supposed to tell you. He's set up a dating lottery for you. Naru and I have been helping him select potential dates. This one here was rejected."

Sensei stood up quickly with a strange look on his face. "What do you mean dating lottery?"

Irie rolled her eyes and clucked her tongue at us. "Listen here you two, stay out of this. Jiraiya may have rejected me, but he didn't mean it."

Sakumo-sensei closed his eyes before turning towards the woman. "I don't know what's going on, but I do know that I want you off of my property now."

"Sweetheart, you're missing out on a great time."

"Then so be it."

Irie flipped her brown hair behind her right shoulder before sauntering off of the porch. Sensei turned to both of us and pointed towards the door. "Inside. Now."

We obediently followed him inside. Just from his suddenly chilly aura I could tell he was pissed, as could Aki. The dog ran to meet us only to whimper as Sensei walked by her. She promptly raced back upstairs with her tail between her legs.

Sensei guided us to the couch before motioning for us to explain to him what was going on. I looked over and met Kakashi's eyes. He sighed before nodding.

"Dad, Jiraiya came to us a few days ago with an idea for a dating lottery for you. He wants to help you find a girlfriend and Naru and I agreed to help him so we would have a say in who came to the house. We were only doing it for your happiness."

I nodded in agreement. "We figured he was going to do it anyway, so why not make sure the girls were okay?"

Sensei closed his eyes as he sunk down into the chair across from us. "What am I going to do with you two? It's a noble cause, but I don't need a woman in my life right now. I'm happy without a girlfriend."

"Right now, Sensei, but what about later whenever we're older?"

Sensei opened his eyes too look at us both. "Do you two really feel this strongly about it?"

I nodded, as did Kakashi. "We only want the best for you, Sensei."

Sensei ran his hand across his eyes as he sighed. "Why do I suddenly feel like this is going to come back and bite me in the butt?"

"Is that a yes, Sensei?"

"Do I have any other option? Jiraiya's already talked to these women and as much as I dislike Jiraiya, I can't make him go back on his word."

I turned to see Kakashi eye-smiling at Sensei. Maybe this would work out better than I thought it would.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

The next few days passed by rather uneventfully. Sakumo did track Jiraiya down and give him the beating of his life, but he also thanked the man. Sakumo knew he needed that little push from the other man or he would have never started dating again. Jiraiya simply took the beat down, grinned, despite the bloody lip he was sporting, and asked when he wanted his first potential lady-love? Sakumo could tell the man was barely holding back his 'I told you so,' so he mumbled off a random day and walked away as quickly as he could.

He ended up walking to the hospital to get a nurse to heal his bleeding and bruised knuckles. He could have gone straight home and fixed it himself, but something else propelled him to go to the hospital. In the back of his mind, Sakumo wondered if a certain poison technician was entered into the dating lottery and the only way he'd find out was if he asked her.

Bypassing the blushing nurses, Sakumo took the stairs to Tohru's fourth floor office. He knocked on the door and waited for her to call him in before walking in on the biggest mess he'd ever seen. Tohru was simply sitting behind her desk looking over the piles of papers in front of her with a disinterested eye.

"I'm sure staring at them isn't going to get them done."

Her face broke out into a smile as she realized it was Sakumo instead of the annoying chunin she expected it to be. She quickly stood up from her chair and walked over to Sakumo to pull him into a quick hug.

"You're back in the village? For how long?"

Sakumo nodded as he stepped into the office and closed the door behind him. "For a few months. We haven't been back very long."

Tohru looked around her office with a frown as she went over to clear off a chair for Sakumo to sit in. "Well, what brings you to my neck of the woods?"

Sakumo held up his still bleeding knuckles and sheepishly grinned at the woman. "I came to see a nurse, but got sidetracked."

Tohru raised an eyebrow at his injured fist before leaning over her desk and pulling a small first-aid kit out of the top drawer. "I'm not a nurse, you know that right?"

"I know that, but like I said, I got sidetracked."

Tohru reached for his hand and gently dabbed a generous amount of ointment over the irritated skin before tightly wrapping the bandages around his knuckles. "Sidetracked?"

Sakumo grinned as he flexed his hand before walking over and moving the large stack of papers off of the chair she was originally heading towards. With a smile on his face as he turned to tease her. "I can always hear the sound of a woman in need and it looks like I came just in time to save you from your paperwork."

The woman blushed hotly as she tried to look anywhere but the mess in her office. "I got a little behind."

"Just a little? How about a lot?"

Tohru playfully bopped Sakumo on the arm before walking over to sit behind her desk. "It will get done eventually. It's a mess, but it's an organized mess."

Sakumo snorted as he picked up a piece of paper and held it up for Tohru to see. "Organized? Yeah right. You do realize this was supposed to be signed a week ago?"

The woman turned red again as she frantically grabbed for the paper only to see Sakumo was correct. She groaned before hiding her face in her hands. "The Hokage is going to kill me."

"Nah, I've got nothing better to do today. I'll help you get this all together."

Tohru looked up at him skeptically. "Seriously? You do realize this isn't a rare occurrence. I receive more and more paperwork each day and this office will only look exactly like this before the end of the week."

The silver haired man winked at her as he turned to the big stack of paper beside him. "That just gives me an excuse to come back."

Tohru bit her lip as she sunk to her knees beside him. Sakumo noticed she kept more pressure on her left leg than she did her right. He stored that observation away to ask her about later. Tohru picked up a paper and looked at him from the corner of her eye.

"Are you sure you'll have time to come back? With this huge dating lottery Jiraiya is hosting for you?"

Sakumo's grip on the paper tightened ever so slightly as he turned to see her staring intently out of the window.

"Of course, I'll have time." She looked at him and it drove him to ask his second question. "You wouldn't happen to be a part of the group of women chasing after me, would you?"

Her cheeks turned pink as she scoffed at him. "Me chasing you? You wish." She looked away from him before swallowing thickly. "Actually, I'm dating someone right now."

"Oh." Sakumo lowered his eyes as he felt just a tinge of disappointment tighten in his chest. He quickly shoved the disappointment away, it wasn't like they promised to stay single for each other. All they shared was a secret and a kiss, nothing more. "Who is he?"

"Misao, he's a decoder in the Intel department."

"How long have you two been dating?"

"For about five months. We're both rather busy with our jobs and such." Tohru turned her eyes over to Sakumo. "What about you? Seen any girl that strikes your fancy?"

Sakumo shrugged as he flipped through the stack of papers in front of him. "Jiraiya hasn't sent any over yet, but I do suspect it'll be soon."

Tohru nodded as she took the stack of papers from him, her fingertips barely brushing against his hand. "Well then, I hope you think each date through."

Sakumo's brows furrowed as he looked at the woman beside him. "What do you mean by that?"

"You're a good man, Sakumo, but you're also one of the top Jounin in all of Konoha. There's a huge bulls-eye on not only your wallet, but also your," Tohru bit her lips as a blush raced across her cheeks, "umm, your seed."

The silver haired man snorted as he tossed a few papers into the growing pile beside him. "My seed? Surely letting Kakashi loose on the unsuspecting village was enough for them to realize I spawn only demon children?"

Tohru erupted into giggles at that. "Sakumo! Don't talk about Kakashi like that!"

Sakumo only winked at the woman beside him as he stacked his growing pile of papers neatly. It took a while, but eventually the two had the paperwork neatly organized. The silver haired man left the woman with a mock threat of keeping the place clean or he'd send his demon child to help her next time. Tohru only pretended to be fearful before cheekily pulling him out of the office by his ponytail.

* * *

"Jiraiya-sensei told me about your date tomorrow night, Sakumo."

Sakumo looked out of the corner of his eye to see his blond haired friend coming to sit beside him at the ramen stand counter.

"It's tomorrow then? I'm surprised you didn't have a hand in this too. Kakashi and Naru are already working off their part in it at the training grounds."

Minato grinned as he ordered a bowl of pork ramen. "Yeah, I saw them. They should be here in a few minutes. I told them they could take a break."

Sakumo sipped the broth from his bowl as he watched the two chunin drag themselves towards the ramen stand. "They're still able to walk; they're not allowed to take a break yet."

Minato ignored his friend and only chuckled as the two finally arrived at the ramen stand. "You two lo…"

His eyes trailed from the faces of the two chunin towards a sight he really wished he hadn't have seen. Minato's face paled as his hands started to shake. All he could think about at that moment was getting as far away from the ramen stand as possible.

Kakashi and Naru both noticed how pale Minato suddenly became. Even Sakumo noticed the sudden change in the man. He reached a hand out and waved it in front of Minato's face. "Something wrong, Minato?"

The man only nodded, his eyes trained onto the dusty road leading in front of the ramen stand. He quickly stood to his feet. "I-I ha-have to leave. Now."

Sakumo grabbed Minato's wrist at the last second, effectively keeping the man standing in the ramen stand. "What is going on?"

"Mina-kun!"

Minato actually whimpered in defeat before hanging his head. He lifted his eyes and gave the woman a polite smile. "Iku-hime, what a pleasant surprise. What brings you to Konoha?"

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

"Iku-hime, what a pleasant surprise. What brings you to Konoha?"

I couldn't believe my eyes. Before me was possibly the most trifling woman I'd ever had the misfortune of meeting. She hadn't changed much over the years. She still wore those same gaudy jewels all over her body and was still dying that hair blonde. I heard Naru scoff in disgust beside me as she took in the woman. I had told Naru about her, but I'm sure she never expected to meet her in person.

Dad looked a little lost, but I could tell he recognized the name. I teased Sensei about her as often as I could, considering it was the only good thing I'd gotten on him thus far.

Sensei looked absolutely miserable as the woman leered over at him before planting herself firmly at his side. "Sad tidings bring me to Konoha. For you see, my darling husband, Masa, has passed away."

Sensei lowered his eyes as he awkwardly reached over and patted Iku-hime's arm. His kind nature would be the death of him one day. "I'm sorry to hear that. Your husband was a good man."

She sighed deeply before launching herself into Sensei's arms, weeping loudly. Sensei managed to pull her off of him and offer to get her an escort back to her inn. "I can't take you myself, but I know of someone who can take you."

Iku-hime wiped her eyes with the edges of her handkerchief, so she wouldn't smear her eye makeup, and pouted up at Minato. "Minato-kun, surely there isn't anyone here that's better than you."

I saw the look in Sensei's eyes as he quickly glanced over to Dad. The poor man didn't know what horrors Sensei was throwing his way.

"Actually, my good friend Sakumo will be more than happy to escort you back to your inn."

Dad blinked in shock as the woman surveyed him up and down. "Sakumo? As in Hatake Sakumo? The White Fang of Konoha?"

I watched as Iku-hime pushed Sensei away and walked over to Dad. She winked at him before latching onto her arm. "I'm Kato Iku and you are quite the specimen."

"Thanks, I guess."

Iku-hime giggled as she tugged Dad up and forced him to take her arm. "You are such a handsome man, strong too." Her eyes lowered slightly as her hand reached back and rested against Dad's lower back before traveling south. Naru bit back a snort of laughter as Dad nearly jumped out of his skin after Iku-hime gave his backside a generous pinch. "Yes sir, you'll do just fine."

Dad sent Minato-sensei a pleading look before Iku tugged him away.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

Poor Sensei, he never stood a chance against Dad's fear of Iku-hime. I can only hope he gets away without being scarred for life.

"Dad, you should be ashamed."

Dad only sheepishly grinned as he looked in the direction Iku-hime dragged Sakumo-sensei. "I couldn't help it, Naru. I had to do something and Sakumo was just sitting there. You don't understand the horrors I've endured while with that she-devil!"

Kakashi chuckled beside me as he stepped into the ramen stand and climbed onto one of the stools. "Might as well eat while we're here since Dad might be too scarred from his experience to cook anything later."

"You're right about that. Ya know, this might just turn him off of women altogether."

Dad threw some money down on the table and stood up, leaving his full bowl of ramen steaming on the counter. "I feel bad now. I'm going to go save Sakumo; you two stay here and eat."

Kakashi's order of beef ramen was placed in front of him as soon as he sat down. It really was shameful that we ate here enough for Teuchi to know our orders as well as he did. I even saw the man placing Dad's uneaten ramen in a carryout container. Teuchi smiled at me before nodding towards the container and disappearing into the back.

That was code for 'be a dear and take your father his ramen.' I found myself bringing Dad and Kushina their ramen more and more often. Not that I minded, they usually paid for mine anyway. I picked up the container and raced after Dad. It didn't take long for me to catch up with him. He had gotten distracted a few yards down the lane by a few academy students looking for their teacher.

"You're a lifesaver, Naru. I hadn't even gotten to taste the broth yet."

"No problem, Dad."

He ruffled my hair before I took off back down the road. I entered the ramen stand to see a strange sight. Kakashi's chopsticks were lying haphazardly across his bowl. One was even teetering on the rim of the bowl. It was bizarre, almost like he'd been caught off guard.

"Teuchi? Did you see where Kakashi went?"

The man walked out from back with a confused look on his face. "He was here just a few minutes ago." Something in the back of the shop fell to the ground, causing the older man to run back there to check it out.

A puff of air hit my back and I fully expected to see Kakashi standing behind me. I quickly turned only to be met with a black sheet being pulled over my head. Everything from that point on was darkness.

* * *

( **Narrator POV)**

Twin cloaked figures happened upon the Ichiraku ramen stand shortly after Hatake Sakumo and Namikaze Minato left, causing the two figures to spring into action. Their mission was simple. Acquire one boy and one girl from inside the stand and do it without being caught. One quietly snuck down the side of the stand and easily snatched Hatake Kakashi from his stool. The other captured Namikaze Naru's attention long enough to take her right outside the stand. Best thing about it, no one saw a thing.

Once their prizes were in hand, they were to report back to their designated safe points. The two chunin were to remain separated 'til the time came to release them. Naru's assailant took the struggling girl deep into the pits of the ANBU headquarters before dropping her off in the middle of one of the huge conference rooms used for meetings. Kakashi's assailant dropped the tensed boy deep in the Forest of Death.

Kakashi managed to land on his feet when the cloaked figure literally dropped him to the ground and took off. The sun barely made it through the towering limbs above him, giving the area an eerie feel. Kakashi wished he would have fought back against the figure that snatched him, but he was too damn tired from his Dad's training regime to even think about reacting. Plus, the chakra of the person that snatched him was familiar and lacked the killing intent of an enemies' chakra. A part of the silver haired boy trusted the cloaked figure enough to see where this was going to lead him.

He didn't have to wait long. As soon as he stood, two figures appeared out of the darkness, both bearing the masks of ANBU animals. One bore green lines contorted into a hawk's beak, while the other was delicately etched into the shape of a cat's snout. The Cat held something in his hands, covered in a blood red scarf.

"Hatake Kakashi."

Kakashi straightened his back at the authority in the man's voice. "I am he."

"Do you know why you're here?"

Kakashi shook his head, never once taking his eyes off of the two figures in front of him. "No, I do not."

Hawk moved forward and placed a heavy hand on Kakashi's shoulder, ignoring the way the growing muscles tensed underneath his fingers. "You've caught our attention, Kakashi. We're here to offer you a deal you can't refuse."

Cat lifted his other hand and removed the scarf from the porcelain mask in his hand. Staring at Kakashi was none other than the emotionless white and red face of the dog. Kakashi felt like lightning tore through him in that moment. He wanted to accept it, but he couldn't. He knew how his Dad felt about him joining ANBU at such a young age. He just couldn't go against his father's wishes on this point. Not now at least.

"I can't."

Hawk chuckled as he bent closer to Kakashi and whispered lowly into the boy's ear. "ANBU could give you everything you've ever wanted. Your father never joined ANBU did he?"

Kakashi slowly nodded his head, eyes trained on the mask in front of him. All he needed to do was reach out and grasp it to accept their proposal.

"Think about it, Kakashi, you would finally get out from underneath his shadow. Finally do something he's never done before."

It was a tempting offer. Kakashi took a step forward and gently stroked the mask, his finger tracing the swirling red pattern around the white porcelain. He stepped away from it and looked up at the ANBU holding the mask.

"No. He would never forgive me if I did it."

"You can't be daddy's little boy forever, Kakashi. Think about it, Kakashi, you'll finally be someone besides 'Baby Fang' and 'Sakumo's boy.' Don't you want the recognition of being Hatake Kakashi?"

Kakashi reached forward once more, his mind racing through scenario after scenario. He could easily take the mask and become ANBU. He'd already received his assassination training and he excelled at it. So what was stopping him from putting on the unforgiving mask? What was stopping him from becoming a legend within ANBU?

A picture of his father flashed before his eyes and Kakashi let his arm drop once more. He wanted recognition, but he wasn't going to give up his father to do it.

"I'm sorry, ANBU-san, it can't be done now."

Hawk growled impatiently, but Cat held up a hand to silence the man. "It's his decision and we're not to challenge his decision anymore than we already have." Cat turned and looked deep into Kakashi's eyes before covering the dog mask again. "It'll be ready for you, whenever you're ready to become a man."

They disappeared, leaving Kakashi to trudge his way out of the Forest of Death.

* * *

Sakumo was seriously freaked out. He finally managed to escape the horrid yellow haired woman, because he couldn't bring himself to call her hair color blonde, by shoving Minato into her room only to discover his kids were gone. Normally it wouldn't have bothered him if they randomly disappeared, but when Teuchi mentioned how strange Naru was acting before she disappeared he really started to worry. Biting his thumb, Sakumo called upon Tobias.

"Kakashi and Naru are missing. Can you detect any foreign scents that I wasn't able to pick up?"

Tobias looked back at Sakumo before taking off towards the edge of the stand and growling to get his master's attention.

"Found something?"

"Their scents are mixed together with whoever took them."

"Are you sure this isn't just old trails?"

Tobias shook his head as he sniffed the length of the stand and growled at the smell. "They're fresh. Smells like sweat and ramen."

"Can you tell if whoever took them is from Konoha?"

Tobias nodded once before sticking his snout back onto the wooden porch to inhale the scant traces there. Scent was an amazing thing. Not very many people realized it, but each village had their own distinct scent, whether it be from the soil or the trees. Sakumo's ninken could usually tell exactly where their target came from because of this. Tobias raised his head quickly and looked between Sakumo's eyes and the forehead protector.

Sakumo instantly understood. "So someone from Konoha took them? Let's go find them, Tobias."

The brown wolf took off with Sakumo following close behind.

* * *

The black sheet was removed from Naru's head as soon as her backside touched a freezing cold chair. Biting back the yelp of surprise, Naru looked around her to see she was in a bright white meeting room. The only door in the room opened to reveal a rather large man wearing the standard ANBU uniform and a mask skillfully painted into the visage of a boar.

"What the hell am I doing here? Where the hell do you get off having me brought here?"

The man snickered to himself as he walked forward and greeted Naru. "I see you're every bit as lively as the reports say you are. Welcome, Namikaze Naru, to the ANBU headquarters. It must be nice to be invited in, instead of sneaking your way in."

Naru didn't blush, nor did she react to the man in front of her. "You've got to be kidding me." The man ignored her as he walked over, grabbed her weapons pouch before heading towards the door. "Wait! What are you doing? Where the hell are you going? Don't ignore me!"

Boar turned and gave her a two finger wave before disappearing out the door. She could hear the outside lock clicking into place after he closed the door behind him. Naru growled as she jumped to her feet and walked over to attempt to open the door. Unfortunately, the door wouldn't budge an inch.

She huffed loudly as she looked around the room and tried to fight down the panic arising in her chest. Though she was in a room and not a cell, the situation brought back bad memories of her time in Fort Kei. She shook away the lingering feeling of coldness seeping into her bones and focused all of her attention on looking around the room for any exit because there was no way in hell she was waiting for the ANBU to come back.

She saw no easy exit. The room was windowless and the only door was locked. She knew she couldn't burrow her way through the floor, so her only other option was going up. Naru's eyes shifted back over to the locked door and she frowned. She couldn't use charka or they would sense it and come see what she was doing.

Biting back a curse, Naru walked over to the table in the middle of the room and climbed on top of it. She wasn't tall enough to reach the ceiling tiles from the top of the table, but if she used the chair she would easily be able to reach the ceiling. Quickly hopping down, Naru grabbed her chair and placed it on top of the table before finally climbing on top of that. It was a dangerous stunt, but her fingertips could easily reach the tiles. She pushed against them and felt her heart drop into her stomach whenever the tile wouldn't budge.

Snarling at the tile, Naru formed her hand into a fist and punched through the plaster. It crumbled to the ground, hitting the table with soft thuds. She looked back at the door to still see it locked and closed. Flashing a grin towards the closed door, Naru used her upper body strength to pull herself into the ceiling and out of the room.

The first thing Naru noticed was that the tiles were fragile and couldn't support her entire weight. She would have to spread her weight over more than one tile in order to make it far enough away from the room to drop into a hallway and get out. Closing her eyes and trying to imagine the layout of the room, Naru crawled forward towards what she hoped was the hallway.

Naru continued her slow, steady crawl for a few moments 'til she heard the sound of feet hitting hard floor below her. She placed her ear close to the tile and tried to figure out how many people were in the room or hallway. She could only hear one set of feet. Well, that increased her odds of getting out. Naru shifted her body to the left, fully intending on moving a tile so she could peek through, only to put all of her weight onto the tile directly underneath her. The tile buckled, causing her to fall from the ceiling and into the hallway.

Naru managed to land on her feet just before she hit the ground, immediately falling into a defensive position. She was more than ready to fight her way out if she needed to. The ANBU captain in front of her laughed, breaking Naru's concentration enough for the girl to drop her defensive stance.

"You put on quite the show for one so young."

Naru's eyes narrowed as she furrowed her brows in confusion. "What do you mean?"

The captain, wearing the tiger mask, pointed into the ceiling and chuckled again. "Every meeting room holds cameras. We've been watching you for a while now."

"Why?"

"It was a test. A test to see if you had what it took to think outside of the box. A test to see if you could thrive after being taken out of your element and you did."

"I feel like I'm beginning to repeat myself, but why?"

"You're being invited to join ANBU, along with Hatake Kakashi, of course."

"We're too young."

Tiger shook her head as she crossed her arms across her chest. "ANBU turns a blind eye towards age and gender. The Hokage may not be comfortable admitting you because of your age, but if you agree then he cannot stop you. It's your decision."

"My decision is 'no.' I can't handle ANBU right now, not when I'm more help to Konoha on the battlefield."

"Reconsider, Naru, your talents will be just as handy here as they are out there." The woman tilted her head closer to Naru's ear and whispered ever so gently. "Plus, in here no one would ever have the chance to kidnap you again. You'd never have to live in fear of it."

Naru frowned at the woman as she processed her words. "I don't fear kidnapping."

Tiger shrugged as she walked forward. "Sounds to me like you are trying to convince yourself more than me. How about a tour to change your mind?"

Naru followed the ANBU out of the room. "A tour isn't going to change my mind, ANBU-san."

"It just might, my dear, and please, call me Tsukiko. Let's start with the ninjutsu room."

Tsukiko. She recognized that name immediately as Kakashi's tormentor. Naru glared at the woman in front of her. Damn her, damn her for using her weakness against her and for being such a bitch to Kakashi. Not only was she trying to touch a sensitive subject with her kidnapping, she was also dangling jutsu in front of her. She'd kill to get her hands on some of the ninjutsu in there, but she wouldn't destroy her relationship with her father and sensei to do it. She knew they didn't want her or Kakashi in ANBU so young.

"Cheat."

Tiger chuckled as she led the way down the hall and into the heart of the building. With a wide sweeping hand motion, the ANBU directed Naru towards the door to her immediate right. The blonde haired girl sighed before opening the door and seeing the shelves of scrolls and books before her. She could probably spend years in this room and never finish reading, unless she used her kage bunshin, which didn't seem like a bad idea to her.

Naru reached for one of the scroll, but immediately had her hand slapped away by the older female.

"For ANBU members only."

The kunoichi swore underneath her breath as Tsukiko led her right back out of the room. She sent a withering glance her way and a longing one back towards the closed door before following after the woman. Tsukiko took her through many different rooms. Some housing weapons she'd never seen before and others housing scrolls of jutsu that she would love to get her hands on. She even took her through the specialization departments to show her the different facilities. She saw everything from the intelligence department to the seduction corps before she finally brought her back into the meeting room she was originally put in.

Once their tour was finally done, Naru turned to the woman to address her.

"Okay, Tsukiko, why is it so important that I become a member of ANBU?"

"You would do very well within our halls. Your talents would benefit the village better here than if you were on the outside."

Naru sighed deeply again as she shook her head. "I'm exactly where I need to be at this point in time."

"You've trained to become a demolition expert, correct?" At her nod, Tsukiko continued, "Your talents are being wasted. The Hokage has your entire team on a hiatus for the next four months. All of that training you endured will go to waste. You'll just forget everything."

Naru shook her head as she squared her shoulders and stared the ANBU down. "I haven't been inside Konoha for nearly three years. I'm going to enjoy being inside the village while the Hokage decides what to do with me. He wouldn't have ordered my training if he was just going to let it all go to waste."

Tsukiko tilted her head, "but can you be certain of this?"

Naru never faltered. "Yes, now take me back to Ichiraku."

"I'm not allowed to push you for an answer, but if you ever change your mind, we'll be watching. We're always watching, Naru-chan."

* * *

Tobias found Kakashi just as the silver haired boy was walking out of the Forest of Death. Sakumo barely managed to swallow the lump of fear down in his throat before he pulled Kakashi into a tight hug. Despite the fact that he was sure Kakashi could handle himself in any situation, it was still a scary thought for the father that his son could be harmed within the village walls. They were in a war and infiltrations had happened before.

"What happened?"

Kakashi shrugged his dad off and walked back towards the marketplace. "Nothing."

Tobias snorted at the blatant lie. Sakumo shushed the wolf before walking forward and placing a hand on Kakashi's shoulder. "Seriously son, who took you?"

"It's nothing to concern yourself over. It won't happen again."

Sakumo's grip tightened as he spun Kakashi around to look him in the eyes. "I want to know who took you and why."

Kakashi's eyes dropped to the ground for a few seconds before finally rising to meet his father's eyes. "I got a visit from ANBU. They wanted me to join."

Something deadly entered Sakumo's eye at that moment. It was such a strong emotion that Kakashi actually felt like his heart was going to freeze in his chest from fear. The fingers gripping his shoulder suddenly tensed and tightened painfully around the wiry muscle and bone there. Tobias whimpered as his previously wagging tail drooped. The wolf even went as far as to lie on the ground away from Sakumo.

"You did?" A shiver ran down Kakashi's spine as he saw his Dad smile. "Well, let's see what happened to Naru and then I'll decide how severe this is going to be. Come along, Kakashi, Tobias."

Kakashi gulped back the lump in his throat as he obediently followed after the man, with Tobias in tow. It didn't take them long to find Naru wandering around the marketplace with a scowl on her face. Sakumo didn't stop his long strides as he pulled Naru out of the eye of the public and into one of the alleys.

"Naru, did ANBU pay you a visit?"

Naru mumbled angrily before nodding her head. "They're a bunch of bastards is what they are! They kidnap me and then dangle ninjutsu in front of me before snatching it away!"

Sakumo's eyes flashed as he patted Naru's head and motioned for both of the chunin to come closer. "I told them to leave you two alone, but they don't seem to listen very well." The grin on Sakumo's face turned positively evil as he turned to Kakashi. "Go find Minato and Kushina."

Naru's eyes widened slightly as Kakashi took off down the lane. "What are you doing go to do, sensei?"

"Something you're going to like."

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

It really was a very tense meeting. Sensei was pissed, that was obvious, but there was something about his anger that made everyone around him giddy with excitement. There was a certain level of suspense just below the surface that made my skin tingle.

It didn't take long for Kakashi to find Dad and Kushina and an even shorter time for us to make it back to Sensei's house. In fact, by the time Sensei finished explaining the situation the sun was barely disappearing behind the clouds. Dad didn't take the news well. He wanted Tsukiko's blood. Kushina had this strange look on her face, one that screamed she was ready to take on any challenge. They were all ready to end ANBU's tireless obsession with Kakashi and I.

"Well, what do we do, Sakumo?"

Sensei looked around the table at us. We were all sitting in the kitchen, the adults in chairs while Kakashi and I decided to sit on the countertops.

Kushina snorted as her hands tightened into fists and firmly placed them on the kitchen table. "You mean before or after I beat the snot out of them?"

Sensei mindlessly petted Aki's head as she nuzzled her snout into his knee. Aki was acting strange too. As soon as Tobias stepped into the house, Aki went racing to Kakashi's side. When that didn't seem to deter Tobias' attention from her, she started hanging close to Sakumo-sensei. Even now Tobias was watching Aki from across the room and it looked like his gaze scared her.

Sensei turned to Dad and grinned as he pointed at me and Kakashi. "Why not let Naru and Kakashi do what they do best?"

I grinned at Sensei. He was right; I liked this idea. "Are you suggesting we prank them, Sensei?"

Sensei nodded as Dad frowned. "A prank? How is a prank going to show teach them to leave our kids alone?"

Kakashi chuckled, "you're forgetting that our pranks are legendary for making a statement, Sensei."

"Kakashi's right, Minato. Their pranks made a huge impact before they were deployed and during the war itself. I think to celebrate their reunion we let them prank the hell out of the ANBU."

Dad grinned as he reached over and ruffled Kakashi's hair. "So kiddos, got any ideas?"

A brilliant plan sparked in my mind as I turned over to grin at Kakashi, who was grinning right back. At the same time we nodded to each other. "Oh, we've got one."

The ANBU wouldn't know what hit them.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

They didn't have much time and Minato knew that better than any of them. It was almost noon and that made him worry. Naru and Kakashi's plan was brilliant, but it was complicated and time consuming. Each person in their five man group had a specific job that needed to be done at a specific time or the entire plan would fail. Each job was difficult, but nothing they couldn't handle.

First off, Minato had to use the remaining influence he had from his ANBU days to find out when and where Tsukiko's team trained. It actually wasn't hard. He charmed the chunin on duty with smooth words and cheeky grins before dropping the question. The female answered without a second thought, giving him a flirty smile whenever he excused himself from her desk. Minato wasted no time after he got his information. Since the group trained at noon every day, Minato sent a toad to Kakashi and Naru as soon as he could so they could start setting up the prank in training ground forty-six.

The next step got really complicated. Sakumo and Kushina were covering all the training targets in training ground forty-six with rubber and then repainting them to look like they were just plain old wood targets. Unfortunately, they couldn't use a genjutsu because the ANBU-level ninja would most likely sense the genjutsu and the kids didn't want them being tipped off about anything.

While Sakumo and Kushina were on target duty, Naru was going to infiltrate the ANBU headquarters with some of his specialty seals in tow. It was her job to switch Tsukiko's team's weapons with their _special_ weapons. Which were really nothing more than a bunch of toys henged to look like their katanas and other weapons. Originally this was the only part of the plan that bothered Minato because of the dangerous aspect of Tsukiko's team being called out and taking the weapons, but a quick check of the ANBU rosters told him Tsukiko's team was homebound for the next few months.

With Naru deep in ANBU headquarters, Kakashi was going to sneak into the Academy supply closet and take their blunted shuriken. It was then his job to quickly place storage seals on the shuriken so they exploded with itching powder on impact. Sort of like his specialty smoke bombs, but more refined.

Minato looked at the sun and saw it was getting closer to noon. He took a deep breath before quickly heading over to see if Kushina needed any help with her part of the final phase of the prank. She was in charge of setting up traps around the clearing. He walked into the training ground to see her watching Sakumo as the man removed his hands from the ground and winked at her. Kushina turned to greet him but quickly held up her hands.

"Whoa, Blondie! You almost walked right into my trap."

Minato jumped back and looked down at the innocent looking pile of leaves. "You could have warned me."

Kushina snorted as she walked around the trap and admired her handiwork. "I do think this is working out beautifully."

Sakumo nodded just as Naru and Kakashi crashed into the training ground. Kakashi caught his breath first. "We've got exactly ten minutes. The weapons were planted and taken. Are the traps set?"

Kushina nodded as she pointed her thumb back towards the clearing. "Set and ready."

"Dad, what about the ground?"

Sakumo grinned as he suddenly dug his heal hard into the ground revealing very loose and sandy soil. "Just add water and we'll have quicksand."

Naru clapped her hands together. "Excellent! Kakashi and I are going to hide out behind the training posts. You three make yourselves scarce 'til I give the signal. Then you know what to do."

Kakashi turned to Naru with a raised eyebrow. "You still haven't told us what the signal is."

Naru blushed hotly as she brought her hand up to scratch the back of her head. "Oh yeah, sorry. It's a whistle."

Everyone nodded before disappearing into the trees as Tsukiko and her team arrived. Despite the secrecy surrounding ANBU, they usually trained in the same training grounds everyone else had access too. Anyone could use training ground forty-six, but they rarely did considering how close it was to training ground forty-four and nobody willingly trained in the Forest of Death.

From their position in the trees behind the training posts, Naru and Kakashi could easily see the three-man team that belonged to Tsukiko. Each one wore a blank mask with Tsukiko's being the only mask painted. A part of Kakashi's mind remembered this little tactic being one ANBU captains used to whip their subordinates into shape. It separated the ANBU captain from the failing subordinates by taking away their painted masks and giving them trainee masks, almost like saying they weren't good enough to wear the complete uniform of ANBU.

"Today we're going to work on accuracy. All of you have piss poor accuracy rates that make me as your commander look bad and we all know I fucking hate looking bad."

"Yes, ma'am."

Tsukiko paced in front of them, her feet kicking up dust as she abruptly pivoted and grabbed one of her subordinates by his armor. "You disgust me most of all. Your stamina is that of a pre-genin civilian academy student and I don't even want to know who taught you that sword form you used during our last mission. Your job for today is to practice on getting an actual form."

The ANBU nodded before pairing off with the ANBU to his left. They walked to the middle of the training ground and started running through stances. The taller ANBU would gently strike the shorter one with his katana whenever he needed to correct his form. Minato began counting hits. His seals on the katanas were really special; they released the henge on the 'katanas' after exactly fifteen hits. So far the duo was up to ten hits apiece. Minato couldn't wait to see their reactions whenever their katanas turned into toys.

Tsukiko turned to her last subordinate and shook her head at him. "Aim and accuracy are the most important thing for a shinobi, especially for an ANBU. If you miss your target four times out of ten then you're most likely going to die. You missed four times yesterday and today I want to see some improvement."

The man nodded before quickly turning towards the training targets and readying his weapons. Kakashi frowned at Tsukiko and almost wished one of the shuriken would bounce off of the rubber and smack her in the back of the head. He remembered how much of a bitch she was to him. Apparently she just liked being a bitch to her subordinates.

Tsukiko walked to the centre of the training field and began running through her katas. That's just about the same time all hell broke loose.

The two ANBU practicing their kenjutsu jumped away from each other suddenly as their katanas shook in their hands before smoke enveloped them. The shorter ANBU dropped his katana to the ground and fell backwards right on top of Tsukiko. Naru had to bite her lip to keep from laughing out loud.

"What the fuck is going on? What the hell are you doing?"

"Taichou! Something's wrong with our katanas!"

The ANBU still standing with his katana growled as he held it up to show his captain. Where once there was a sword now rested a jump rope. On the ground, where the skittish ANBU dropped his katana was now a yellow rubber chicken.

Tsukiko growled low in her throat. "I don't know what is going on here, but someone needs to fess up no…"

This time Kakashi had to bite the inside of his cheek to keep from laughing as a stray shuriken, bouncing off of the rubber target, hit Tsukiko in the back of the head and promptly exploded. She didn't know it, but that explosion just rained itching powder down the back of her armor. Oh how Kakashi was enjoying this.

The ANBU working on his aim began to shake as Tsukiko walked towards them. "I'm sorry, Taichou. I don't know what's wrong with the training post, but everything I throw at it is bouncing right back."

Tsukiko didn't say a word, only held out her hand for one of the shuriken. Without even looking at the weapon, she threw it towards the training post only to have to duck down as the shuriken came right back at her and exploded somewhere over to her right.

The small explosion must have startled the other two ANBU, for the shorter one jumped back and right into Kushina's trap. Suddenly he was seeing the world upside down as he dangled from the tree by his feet. Tsukiko ignored him for the most part, just gave a signal for his kenjutsu partner to cut him down, which unfortunately ended up causing him to step into one of Kushina's traps too. He found himself wrapped up in a net.

Tsukiko held up a hand and the remaining ANBU jumped to her side. "I don't know what's going on, but this isn't funny." She walked over to her trapped subordinates and helped them from the traps. Together the four of them assumed a defensive position in the middle of the training ground. That's when Naru gave the signal. Her whistle cut through the still air, signaling Sakumo and Kushina to prepare themselves.

Sakumo quickly appeared at the tree line, his fingers already weaving though hand seals. Whenever Kushina was setting up traps, Sakumo had been using an earth elemental jutsu to loosen the soil in the training ground in order to make it sandy and fragile. The soil below wouldn't support the weight of the ANBU; they would sink into the soil. He couldn't just leave the soil like that, though, so he used a katon jutsu to harden the topsoil so the ANBU wouldn't notice a difference in the composition of the soil. The jutsu he was weaving now would break apart the topsoil and reveal the loose soil beneath.

Once the sequence of seals was complete, Sakumo slammed his hand onto the ground and watched as the hardened topsoil crumbled, taking the ANBU down with it. It was now Kushina's turn. She was in charge of making the loose soil even harder to get out of. Using a water jutsu, Kushina was able to turn the soil into a quicksand type trap, effectively capturing the ANBU where they stood.

It was in that moment that Sakumo noticed Tsukiko was not among her teammates. In fact, Tsukiko was standing on the edge of the training ground applauding. Kakashi and Naru dropped down from their position in the trees and frowned at the woman.

"Well done. I should have known there would be some retaliation, especially since I was warned to stay away from them."

Sakumo was across the field in seconds, grappling with Tsukiko. She managed to roll away from him, only to get caught by Minato. The blond haired man held her arms behind her back and lightly stepped on the outsides of her sandals to keep her from retaliating.

Sakumo walked forward and roughly reached underneath Tsukiko's mask to grab her chin and turn her head towards him. His voice was low, almost a hiss, as he spoke to her.

"You just don't listen do you? I'm tired of playing nice. Leave them alone or else."

Tsukiko sneered beneath her mask. "Or else what? You're all talk and no game, Hatake. You threaten, but you never carry out your threats."

The White Fang of Konoha glance at the masked woman before shifting his position to the right just a little bit. In a lightning fast movement, he drove his fist right into the middle of Tsukiko's stomach with enough force to knock the breath out of her and drive her to her knees. Minato winced, but let her fall to the ground.

It was cruel, but it was the only way she was going to learn. Sakumo knew he couldn't make idle threats anymore, especially not where she was concerned.

Tsukiko curled in on herself as she clutched her stomach. Minato reached down and dragged her over to her teammates before tying her up with the length of rope Kushina offered him. Naru's eyes were trained to the ground as she watched Tsukiko attempt to catch her breath. Her Sensei usually didn't do things like that, but she kind of understood the statement, even if she didn't like it.

Kakashi placed a hand on her shoulder before turning back to the adults. "The Hokage should be here in a few moments. Naru and I contacted him after we infiltrated the Academy and the headquarters."

"You're infiltrating places again and here I thought you two only used your skills for good." Everyone turned to see the Hokage standing at the edge of the training ground with a smoking pipe in his hands. "Well, what do we have here?"

Minato pointed towards the ANBU. "They've tried to recruit Kakashi and Naru again, but this time they went too far. They kidnapped them both from Ichiraku Ramen stand. It was funny in the beginning, but I draw a line at kidnapping."

Hiruzen nodded as he took in the twitching ANBU. If it were his guess, he would say Kakashi's itching powder just kicked in. He remembered all too well how good that stuff worked and how hard it was to get it out of fabric. "Even I have told the ANBU commander that Naru and Kakashi are not to be actively recruited yet. I will be having words with them."

Sakumo crossed his arms as he nodded towards the stuck ANBU. "Is that going to make her stop?"

The Hokage nodded as Tsukiko lowered her eyes to the ground. "I promise you that she will never bother those two again."

"That's all I ask, Hokage-sama."

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

Well, the prank went off without a hitch and it looked like Tsukiko wasn't going to be bothering us anytime soon. All we had to look forward to now was Dad's date tonight and oh what an experience that was. You see, Dad hadn't been out on a date since he dated my Mom, back when they were teenagers. Dad is nearly thirty-one-years-old, his teenage years were nearly fifteen years ago and he actually looks nervous.

Of course, I'm sure it's natural to feel nervous about a blind date. I mean, what if she's ugly or just dull? How do you end dates like that? Would Naru or I need to go along in the shadows in case he needed an excuse to leave? Jeez, I swear I feel like I'm a parent letting their child date for the first time. It's nothing new that I'm protective of him, but suddenly I feel an entirely new reason to be protective of him because now I'm handing him to somebody that could kill his happiness.

I was sitting on Dad's bed watching him sort through shirts whenever a series of knocks sounded at the door. He looked up in surprise before realizing what time it was. "Damn! Okay, Kakashi, go answer the door and entertain her while I finish getting ready."

I nodded and wandered slowly downstairs to open the door. Naru was nearly bouncing with excitement as she stood beside the door. I swear she is more excited about this than Dad was. Taking a deep breath, I opened the door to see a pair of bright green eyes staring at me. Seriously they were the first thing I noticed because all of her makeup seemed to be dedicated to making that color stand out against her pale skin. Immediately I had a bad feeling about this one.

"Oh, aren't you handsome. You must be Kakashi."

I nodded as I looked the woman over. Her hair was completely covered by a dark purple headscarf, making her eyes stand out all the more. She was fairly plain, but there was something about her that intrigued me. As discreetly as I could, I looked at her legs, only to find them lacking. Yep, this one wasn't going very far.

"I am. And you?"

The woman smiled sweetly, it actually made my teeth hurt watching her smile, before giving a tiny bow. "So proper too. I am Kazuma Momoko, but you can call me Momo."

I looked over at Naru and saw the frown on her face, but ignored it in favor of inviting Dad's date inside. "Kazuma-san, Dad's running a little late. He'll be down in a few minutes."

"No problems, dear. I'm a very patient woman."

Naru's frown deepened as Momoko walked over and sat down on the couch. Naru even went as far as to sit in the chair instead of beside the woman. Apparently there was something about her that Naru didn't like either. We sat in silence for a few minutes before Dad came downstairs.

If I wouldn't have seen it with my own eyes then I wouldn't have believed it possible. Momo batted her eyes at Dad and angled her face to where the light hit it just right. Dad's eyes instantly zoned in one her green ones and he smiled. It was then that I remembered that my mother had green eyes. Either Dad's attraction to green was causing him to smile at the woman or she was just damn good at manipulation.

"So you're Sakumo? I've heard so much about you around the village. You see my parents owned a little café on the edge of my home village. I used to help out and listen to the stories our customers brought in."

Yep, she's just that damn good at manipulation. I looked over at Naru and slowly signed for her to meet me in my room after they left. There was no way in hell I was letting Dad fall in love with this lying banshee. I still couldn't shake the feeling that I'd met her somewhere before.

"Oh! No, no, it's okay! I can put it right back on."

I saw Naru's face of horror before I turned around and saw the mess of pink hair sitting atop the woman's head. In that moment I was determined to get her away from my father. Kazuma Momoko was none other than Haruno Momoko, future mother of Haruno Sakura and I would be damned before I let her become future stepmother of Hatake Kakashi.


	41. Part 2: Chapter 11

**Part 2: Chapter 11**

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

"They're sitting at the fourth table to your left," I whispered as Naru and I peeked over the edge of the windowsill we were crouching under. Dad and Momoko were eating at a tiny café on the outskirts of the village that looked like it had seen better days. Seriously, I was afraid the walls would fall over if a strong wind came by. Well, it may have been rickety looking, but at least it had plenty of windows for surveillance and thick bushes for cover.

"I see them." Her eyes met mine and she gave me a wicked grin. "We've got to get closer."

I nodded and pointed towards the window to our left. We would have to crawl through some thorny looking shrubbery, but we would be at the window directly beside Dad's table. There was a greater risk of being seen the closer we got, but risks needed to be taken tonight. We needed to keep a close eye on Momoko.

Kazuma Momoko, better known to us as Haruno Momoko, was possibly the most unpredictable civilian woman in all of the shinobi nations. As Sakura's mother, Momoko managed to fill her daughter's head with flimsy dreams of riches and prestige by persuading her to pursue a relationship with the last Uchiha. No one was ever certain why she pushed Sakura towards the Uchiha so hard. I can only assume that Momoko figured she would gain stature by becoming the maternal grandmother of the clan.

Momoko's dreams were big, but she sabotaged Sakura at nearly every turn. Being Sakura's sensei, I was required to dig deep into my student's life to see what I was working with. Momoko severely damaged Sakura's confidence from an early age. She teased Sakura mercilessly about her forehead and weight, in fact, few people knew it but it was actually Momoko that created the self-esteem issues Sakura would carry with her for most of her childhood. Unfortunately, I did very little to reconcile those problems because I didn't know what to do beyond mentioning it to the Third.

I'll be honest. In the beginning I had the attitude that I was supposed to train them to be soldiers. I was not their babysitter, nor was I to be their friend. Of course, that changed as the three grew on me. Even then I eventually forgot the uneasy feeling as Team Seven slowly developed an understanding for each other and grew to become good comrades. Well, as good as they were ever going to get.

"Are you finished staring off into space?"

I blinked before looking over at a scowling Naru. "Sorry, I was thinking about something. Have they moved yet?"

She frowned as she turned around to peer into the window. Grunting as she dug her toes into the mulch underneath us. "Negative. He's laughing at something she said though. I think he's having a good time."

I sighed as I pressed my ear against the wooden wall. I could hear their conversation if I listened hard enough, but the rattle of plates hitting tables drowned out parts of what they were saying. The only thing I could tell for certain was that the two seemed at ease with each other and that Dad was smiling more than he'd smiled the entire time we'd been home. It was in that moment that a chilling thought filled my mind.

We only knew the Momoko from our time, an older and hardened woman. What if this younger version was different? What if this Momoko was nothing like our Momoko and we were simply writing her off? From what I remembered, it was Momoko's failed marriage to Sakura's father that made her bitter. What if we could change her path and possibly change Sakura's childhood as well? Granted, I didn't mean let my Dad become her husband, but maybe Dad was supposed to teach her something. He did seem to have a knack for doing stuff like that.

I turned to Naru with a million questions on my tongue and no answers.

"Naru, what if this Momoko isn't like our Momoko? What if we're supposed to change her?"

Naru whipped her head around to look at me with wide eyes and an open mouth. "No way. Not possible."

"Possible. Look at Rafu, he changed. Maybe we're judging her before we've gotten the chance to know her. We can't automatically assume she's evil incarnate now. That would be like punishing baby Itachi for his future when we know we can change it." Naru suddenly became interested in a bug crawling along the leaf in front of her nose. I smiled as her eyes began to cross with the effort of watching the bug crawl down the middle of the leaf. I placed a hand on her shoulder and squeezed gently. "We're trying to make things different; maybe Momoko is also something we need to change. Maybe we judged too harshly because of who she becomes, not who she is."

She looked over at me with wisdom in her eyes. "Maybe you're right, but you could also be wrong. Let's say that maybe Sakumo-sensei is the thing that changes her but what happens to Sakura? What if he falls so in love with her they get married and have a kid? Who's to say that baby will be Sakura? We could possibly be taking Sakura out of the picture if we let them get too close."

I turned around to watch Dad and Momoko interact at the table. He was hanging on her every word and she was smiling sweetly at him. I hated second guessing myself, but Naru was right too. There was always a chance that we could screw the timeline up so badly that entire people could disappear forever.

I bit my bottom lip before tugging on Naru's arm. "Come on, let's go home. We have training in the morning, we'll regroup after that."

Naru followed me out of the bush and we raced back towards the house, jumping across rooftops in the dead of night. We had a lot to discuss, but it could wait 'til later. We did have a training session with Minato-sensei early in the morning.

"Scarecrow! Come look!"

I turned to see Naru stopped on the roof of the building behind me. I jumped back over to her and peered over the side of the building to see where she was pointing. Jiraiya walked below with a young woman holding onto his arm. Naru grinned as she rolled her eyes at the rowdy laughter coming from the intoxicated man.

"We have the time to prank him."

I snorted in laughter as I grabbed her arm and pulled her with me. "We'll get him next time. We've got to get home before Dad's date is over."

She pouted but followed me anyway. I would make it up to her later.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Jiraiya couldn't believe his luck.

He somehow managed to survive the entire day without dying or being maimed. It truly was a miraculous thing considering he'd run afoul with Sakumo earlier. Luckily his old friend didn't do anything worse than bloody his lip. Jiraiya counted himself really fortunate that the silver haired ninja hadn't done anything more to him, especially after the Third told him about Sakumo's attack on the ANBU after they propositioned Kakashi and Naru to join them. It seemed to Jiraiya that Sakumo was finally realizing that actions sometimes spoke louder than words.

Of course, lady luck shined on him once more whenever he met up with the pretty little thing currently clutching his arm. She was gorgeous, well, she was pretty enough if he ignored the slight crookedness of her nose. She was even nice to talk to, if he ignored the slight lisp she had. Other than those minor things, the woman on his arm was truly a treasure and he planned on fully examining her later on. For now, he would impress her with his ninja prowess before rocking her world with his bedroom skills.

"Ya know, sweetheart, I can summon toads."

The woman giggled, tossing her dark hair over her shoulder as she clutched closer to Jiraiya. "Toads? I love toads! Can I see?"

Jiraiya nodded as he gently removed himself from her grasp and walked into the middle of the deserted street. It was rather late at night so no one would mind if he summoned one of his larger toads for his lady friend. "Watch closely now! You're about to see Toad Sage Jiraiya summon his faithful companions."

With a wide sweeping motion, Jiraiya began speeding through the hand seals. With his eyes trained on her ever widening brown ones, he slammed his hand down on the pavement.

"Kuchiyose no Jutsu!"

The area erupted into smoke as an undignified curse was heard before everything fell silent. The woman, who stared unblinkingly at the smoke, cautiously walked forward through the haze.

"Jiraiya-sama?"

The smoke cleared, leaving just the woman standing there. Jiraiya and his toad were nowhere to be found. Feeling like she'd just been tricked, the woman stomped off cursing the man for playing her like he did.

* * *

Jiraiya usually loved being summoned to Mount Myoboku, the toad realm truly felt like a second home to him, but he was beyond pissed at losing the company of such a willing voluptuous beauty.

"It's good that you could finally join us Jiraiya."

Jiraiya glared at the two elder toads, Shima and Fukasaku. Shima, with her purple hair and lips, gave Jiraiya a wide smile as she hopped onto his shoulder.

"You weren't doing anything worthwhile so stop glaring at us."

Fukasaku, with his white hair and rather large eyebrows, nodded in agreement with his wife as he hopped onto Jiraiya's other shoulder. They had watched the entire exchange between Jiraiya and his lady friend through the crystal ball the Great Toad Sage possessed.

"Shima's right. Your business here is far more important than the woman you were trying to impress."

Jiraiya sighed as he turned his head to look at Fukasaku. "Business here? What's going on here?"

Shima tweaked his ear. "You'll find out soon enough. The Great Toad Sage has requested your audience immediately."

Jiraiya furrowed his brows together before walking up the same steps he walked up years before whenever he was told that he'd have a student that would either save or destroy the world. It wasn't long after that meeting that Jiraiya went off in search of this student. He passed through many lands and met many people, but he never found that one person 'til a chance meeting in Konoha led him to Minato. He fully believed Minato was that student and immediately stopped his search to train the boy. So far, Minato was proving his theory right.

The old toad looked down at Jiraiya with half-closed eyes. The leathery skin of his face stretched as he smiled down at the man. "Who are you again?"

Shima sighed, "He's Jiraiya, Ojiji-sama, remember him?"

"Jiraiya, yes, it's been a long time. Please, sit down, we have much to discuss."

Shima and Fukasaku hopped down from Jiraiya's shoulders and over to stand beside the Great Toad Sage's chair. Jiraiya sat down and looked up towards the giant toad.

"What business brings me here? Is something wrong in Konoha?"

"The spiritual realm is abuzz and has been for some time now. I've foreseen a great and terrible force coming to Konoha, but something is off about these dreams, just like something is off about everything."

Jiraiya frowned in confusion. "Great Toad Sage, you're not making any sense."

"I know. That's because my dreams don't make any sense."

Shima snorted underneath her breath. "I knew he was getting senile."

Jiraiya ignored the female toad in favor of watching the smiling toad in front of him. "Try to explain it, maybe we can work through it."

"Jiraiya, what do you know about time travel and manipulation?"

"Very little. Minato's been working on a jutsu that does some time bending and the Uchiha's Sharingan is rumored to have a technique that can bend time as well."

The Great Toad Sage nodded wisely. "You know enough to understand it's a possibility."

Once more Jiraiya blinked in confusion. "I'm not following you."

"The spiritual realm has been disoriented for some time now. My dreams went from clear to disoriented and unreadable before eventually stopping altogether. It wasn't 'til recently that my dreams returned, though, they have changed significantly."

"Something terrible is going to happen then?"

"Oh yes, terrible indeed. Our time has been ripped, allowing a great and powerful force to descend upon the land. Many will die trying to stop this beast and only one side will stand victorious."

Jiraiya wracked his brain trying to understand the prediction. "A beast? Perhaps a demon of some sort? There are rumors that Suna and Kumo have their own demons,jinchūriki, I think they're called. How can we defeat such a thing?"

The Great Toad Sage went on as if he hadn't heard Jiraiya. "You can't defeat it 'til the rip has been repaired, 'til the duplicate is gone."

"Duplicate?"

"In my vision I see two figures standing before their fears with the Book of Time opened before them. They're rewriting it as fast as they can, constantly keeping an eye on their fears. One scratches out entire paragraphs while the other one writes new, longer ones. Unfortunately, their fears are getting closer to them and they are forced to slam the Book of Time shut in order to face them. They begin to battle just about the same time the vision stops. One of them holds power over the duplicate and can use it to destroy the original."

Jiraiya lets out a breath he didn't realize he was holding. "Book of Time? Two figures? Fears? You're not making any sense."

"I only tell the dreams Jiraiya. It's up to you to understand them."

Jiraiya closed his eyes in thought. "I'll return to Konoha with this information. The Third will want to hear of it."

"As you wish. Good luck Jiraiya, the future of Konoha may depend on your ability to understand this vision."

Jiraiya returned to Konoha through the portal with a heavy mind. The Great Toad Sage's visions rarely made sense to him, but this one troubled him greatly. When would the terrible force arrive and just who were these figures battling against the force? It gave Jiraiya a headache trying to figure the mystery out.

He massaged his temple with his fingertips before quickly taking the route to the Hokage's office. When he made it to the building, it didn't surprise him to see the light was still on in the room. The Third had taken to staying later and later as the war progressed. Maybe Sarutobi could shine some light onto the situation.

Taking the steps two at a time, Jiraiya raced upwards. He barreled into the hall only to find the Hokage's door wide open and a lazy hazy of smoke hanging over the hallway. Peeking through the doorway, Jiraiya saw the Hokage standing up behind his desk with a cigarette hanging from his lips.

"You're up awfully late Hokage-sama and I thought you only smoked pipes now."

Sarutobi Hiruzen looked up to see Jiraiya standing in the doorway looking pensive. "I broke my last pipe here and couldn't get my extra one from home. I borrowed a few smokes from the Chunin on duty. Still tastes nasty, but beggars can't be choosers." He snuffed out the cigarette he was smoking and tossed it into the ashtray on his desk. "New reports from the front came in. It's looking like I'll need you, Minato, and Sakumo back on the battlefield sooner than I originally hoped."

Jiraiya walked into the office and gently closed the door behind him. "We haven't even been able to discuss the battle plans for the next campaign yet."

The Sandaime tossed the papers down onto his desk as he sighed. "We're so behind it isn't even funny. I do believe we need something drastic to happen. I don't think it could get any worse than it is right now."

Jiraiya nodded in agreement as he walked over to the window overlooking the village and watched the moon shine above them. "It's always darkest before the dawn, Sensei. You taught me that."

Hiruzen chuckled at his onetime student. "That I did. It's a lesson you learned well. Now, what brings you to my office at such an ungodly hour?"

The white haired man bit the inside of his cheek as he tried to find the right way to tell the Hokage of the Toad Sage's vision. "The Great Toad Sage had a dream that deeply perplexed him. He keeps talking about a duplicate and about two figures rewriting the book of time. He says Konoha is destined for great and terrible things because of some rip in time, something about a beast."

The Hokage's mind instantly zoned in on two young chunin and their rather unique situation, but he couldn't tell Jiraiya about Kakashi and Naru's predicament. Hiruzen looked over at the clock and made a mental note to send for the two chunin at a more decent hour. He needed to inform them to be extra careful around Jiraiya if they didn't want their secret found out. For now, he would simply lead Jiraiya into another direction, away from Kakashi and Naru, but still helpful to their cause. "A beast? Maybe one of the tailed beasts?"

"That's what I thought too."

"See if your spies can dig up any information about them."

"No problem."

The Third smiled to himself as Jiraiya went on to tell him more about the toad's dream. The Hokage figured if he could throw Jiraiya off Kakashi and Naru's tail, then he could buy the chunin enough time to decide if and how they were going to tell others about their predicament. Sending Jiraiya after information on the tailed beasts would keep the man busy while still gathering information that they may need one day. As much as Hiruzen hoped that his village would never see the Kyuubi attack, he knew it was still a major possibility and he wanted them to be prepared.

No, he needed them to be prepared.

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

We made it back home in record time, but it was getting late and Sensei still wasn't back from his date. Needless to say, I was getting a little antsy. Kakashi, on the other hand, was calmly looking out the window watching the leaves blow across the yard. His calm really was starting to annoy me.

"Stop being so loud and calm down. We can't do anything about it right now."

I glared at Kakashi before punching him in the arm. I wanted to wait downstairs, but Kakashi thought it would be better if we waited in his room. He kept mumbling something about not wanting to look suspicious while dragging me up the stairs.

"Kakashi, what if I'm wrong? This is Momo we're talking about! The bane of Sakura's existence! Surely you remember how much she twisted and manipulated our friend? She could do the same thing to Sakumo-sensei! What if she…"

Kakashi covered my mouth with his hand, rolling his eyes as I glared at him once more. "You're so loud. Let's not tell the entire village about our secret okay?"

I stuck my tongue out and licked his hand to get him to remove it from my face. His nose scrunched up in disgust as he wiped his hand on his pants.

"Real mature Naru."

"You were asking for it whenever you put your hand over my mouth and besides, we both know you've got a privacy jutsu up." I gave him a cheeky smile before sighing. "You do realize why I'm having a fit over this, right?"

He nodded as his eyes trailed over to the window. "Of course I do. I remember Haruno Momoko better than you do. I actually had to have a meeting with the woman after I was appointed Sakura's sensei."

I smiled sadly at the name of my friend. I loved Sakura like a sister and missed her fiery presence. I could still remember her last moments as she fought against Karin. She had never before looked more alive than she did trading blows with the other woman. She even smiled after she dealt the killing blow only to find herself injured beyond healing. She died with a smile on her face and fire in her eyes.

I think I missed Sakura most of all because our friendship didn't come easily. I had always wanted to be Sakura's friend, especially in the Academy, but Sakura continuously turned me away. She was simply too influenced by the civilian mindset, because really, only the civilians seemed to have a major problem with me. Most ninja recognized that the Kyuubi was sealed within me and that I wasn't possessed by the demon. Granted, it was getting harder and harder for me to recall our earliest years together, but I remembered all too well how Momo treated Sakura after she became a kunoichi. Momo only wanted to better herself and she used everyone around her to do so including her own daughter.

"What are we going to do?"

Kakashi sighed as he placed a hand on my shoulder and eye-smiled at me. "It's only one date Naru. It's not like he's proposing to her."

"You know how she is Kakashi."

"I know, but Dad's smart and he isn't….."

We both fell silent as the front door opened and quickly shut. I could hear Sensei whistling as he walked into the kitchen and clicked off the lights. By the time he started upstairs I thought I was going to go crazy. He stopped outside of Kakashi's door and gently pushed it open. He chuckled to himself as he walked in and leaned against Kakashi's dresser.

"Somehow I knew I would find you two in here."

Kakashi didn't even acknowledge what Sensei said and went right into the crux of the reason we were waiting for him. "How did the date go Dad?"

Sensei grinned as he shrugged nonchalantly. "She's nice, but there's something about her that seems a little forced. Then there were these moments were she actually reminded me of your mother."

I could feel Kakashi's hand twitch on the bed as Sensei said that. He frowned slightly. "I think she's trying too hard."

"Perhaps, but she could have also been nervous. She told me during dinner that most of her dates were scared of her hair color."

Well, I don't blame them for that. Pink is such a shocking color, even by Konoha standards.

"Well, Dad, it is pink."

Sensei frowned at Kakashi before lightly playing it off by chuckling halfheartedly, "and your hair is silver. Honestly Kakashi, we have no room to discriminate against her hair color." He looked over at the clock and sighed. "We'll talk more about this in the morning. It's late and we've got training bright and early in the morning with Minato."

I opened my mouth to protest, but Kakashi was already kicking me out of his bed, literally. I glared at him as I caught myself before I hit the floor. "He's right."

"Well then, I'll see you two in the morning."

I left the room just as they both chorused goodnight.

* * *

Despite the late night we had, I woke up the next morning fully prepared to face Dad in a test of wills and jutsu. I'd slept really well last night, despite the fact that I'd literally fallen into bed still in my training clothes.

All of that didn't matter though. I was ready to strut downstairs, declare Dad's immediate downfall and proceed to defeat him using the skills I'd gained while we were apart.

Of course, an innocent looking scroll on the table completely changed my plans.

Kakashi and I were being immediately summoned to the Hokage Tower to speak with the Hokage. Sensei looked a little worried as he handed over the scroll to me, but he didn't press for any details.

"It was just delivered a few moments ago. Kakashi's taking a quick shower." Sensei glanced at me from over the rim of his coffee cup with a knowing grin on his face. "For some reason he had twigs and bits of leaves in his hair this morning."

I cleared my throat before opening the scroll and sitting down at the kitchen table. "I don't know what you're talking about Sensei."

Sakumo-sensei only smiled as he took a sip of his coffee. "Sure you don't, but I will be talking to both of you later about covering your scents. I smelled both of you the entire night." I frowned as he sat his cup down and reached over to ruffle my hair. "Don't worry, I'm not mad, amused, but not mad."

"We just wanted to make sure you were okay. Can't have you getting kidnapped."

Sensei's laughter echoed around the room as he stood up and placed his empty coffee cup in the sink. "Of course not. Well, when you two finish with the Hokage, I'll be at training ground six."

With Sensei gone, I impatiently waited for Kakashi to finish his shower. The summons said nothing about why we were being called to the Hokage's office so I was more than a little curious over what the Third wanted. I knew we weren't getting in trouble for the ANBU prank, nor had I gotten to prank Jiraiya the night before, so I knew this meeting had to be over something serious.

I didn't have time to think about it though, because Kakashi was slipping into his sandals and beckoning me out the door. I guess I'll find out when we get to the Hokage.

* * *

The trip to the Hokage's Office was a quiet one and took no time to get there. Really, waiting outside the Hokage's Office was the most time consuming part of our entire trip. The chunin on duty, an older man I'd never seen before, took forever to pay us any attention. He barely even spared us a second glance as he waved us in to see the man. Sarutobi, though, didn't waste one second. As soon as we were in the room he put up a privacy jutsu. Obviously this was an important meeting.

"Hokage-sama," Kakashi started, "is there a problem?"

Sarutobi nodded before sighing. "Yes, a rather large problem." He quickly stood up and walked over to his book shelf.

"Hokage-sama, what's going on?" I asked curiously.

He sighed deeply this time before turning around and facing us. "The Toads are receiving visions, strange visions."

Kakashi twitched nervously, "What kind of visions?"

"Jiraiya speaks of tailed beasts and duplicates. I fear he's going to start talking about time rifts next. The Toads were very vocal about two figures rewriting the Book of Time."

My eyes widened as I looked over at Kakashi. "Us? They're seeing us?"

"We don't know that Naru."

Hokage-sama ran a hand across his eyes in frustration. "No names were given, nor any descriptions. All we know is that the Toads are seeing things about time travel. You two are the only time travelers I've had so far this year."

"What do we do Hokage-sama?"

The old man shrugged, "It's up to you two."

I blinked in confusion, "What do you mean?"

"Jiraiya will eventually find out the truth. The Elder Toad's visions are scarily accurate most of the time. Plus, regardless of his womanizing ways, Jiraiya is a smart man. He'll wrangle up a solution soon, especially now that he's determined to find out the truth."

Kakashi folded his arms across his chest and shifted his weight to his right leg. "We have to outsmart him. There's no way he'll find out about our secret."

"You're forgetting about Naru's chakra. The more he learns, the more he'll realize that her chakra is demonic. Soon he'll even connect her with the jinchūriki."

Kakashi fell silent. I chewed on my bottom lip, "Well, what does this mean? You want us to do something, but our options are limited. I have to use my chakra. It's supposed to be a bloodlimit. It would be suspicious."

Kakashi nodded, "She's right. Is there any way to throw him off the trail?"

The Hokage walked over to his desk and sat in his chair. "I sent him on a mission to look for information about the tailed beasts, but the more I think about the situation, the more I second guess keeping Jiraiya in the dark."

"He can't know."

"Really?" The Hokage asked, "It may be more beneficial to us if he knew. He'd be an asset." Something darkened in the Hokage's eyes, "He'd especially be an asset if there was some sort of time rift. The truth of the matter is that we don't know what damage you two have caused by simply being here. Everything, and I mean everything, happens for a reason."

I couldn't help but want to let Jiraiya know the truth. He had been a complete asshole to me, but I had a godfather Jiraiya at one time. He'd been a great help with everything dealing with Kyuubi. The truth also lied in the fact that Jiraiya had contacts and resources that we could only dream of. He would be a great asset if it came down to actually trying to prevent an attack from any of the bijou. The Hokage was also correct about the consequences of our time-hoping. We'd changed a lot in this time, but what were the consequences to that? All very confusing thoughts.

"My only concern," Kakashi started slowly, "is that neither Minato-sensei nor my dad knows about our situation."

I agreed. "They should know first. It would feel like we were betraying them if we left them in the dark and told Jiraiya."

"The decision is yours to make." The Hokage said, "I have no say over when, how or who you two tell, but I do ask that I be informed." He smiled brightly, "Having the Hokage verify your story makes you look less crazy."

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Kakashi and Naru didn't go to training ground six whenever they got out of the Hokage's office. At first, the two walked around Konoha with heavy hearts.

"What will we do Naru?"

She shrugged as she steered them towards the market. "I don't even know. I almost don't even want to think about it."

Noticing that they were heading to the market, Kakashi nudged Naru's shoulder. "Where are we going?"

"Market. I want to grab some new seeds. Gardening helps me think."

"You and your garden." Kakashi teased.

Naru stuck her tongue out and yelped when Kakashi tried to grab it. They laughed and joked together until both felt the chakra of their favorite lady, Momoko. She was talking to three other giggling ladies, all in fake whispered voices. They both agreed to ignore her, determined to give her a shot before they heard their names.

"The little girl, Naru or something like that, has these ugly scars going across her cheeks. I know the girl is a shinobi, but surely she could cover that up. Made my skin crawl."

Naru's face crumpled in hurt as anger welled up inside Kakashi. The women's shrill laughter jumped up a decibel as Momoko continued.

"And Kakashi, good Lord, he's such an awkward child. I think Sakumo would do well just letting him get lost on a mission somewhere."

"You know," one of the girls stage whispered, "they say he's got the nose of a dog. He'd just find his way back."

The duo burned in anger as Momoko tossed her head back and laughed. "Anyway girls, I have to get ready. I have a date with Sakumo."

"Good luck, love." Momoko's friends chorused after her retreating back.

Naru growled in anger and paced the market. Kakashi tugged on her arm. "Come one Naru, let's go clear our heads."

They eventually made their way to the top of the Hokage Mountain. It overlooked Konoha and was the perfect place to gather their thoughts. Their minds swirled with thoughts of Jiraiya and Momoko. It was entirely too much to take in for one day.

"We have a decision to make."

Naru looked over to Kakashi and nodded, "Of course we do. We always have a decision to make."

Kakashi opened his mouth but was interrupted by the sound of arguing in the background. A familiar voice was completely cutting down another person, who was trying their hardest to outtalk the angry female.

"You vile, disgusting, little worm! How dare you!"

"Now, To-"

"Shut up! Misao, you promised that you'd never cheat on me! I know I've been busy, but that doesn't give you the right to fuck every sleazy, loose whore out there."

"Hold on just a second! She's not sleazy; she's a sophisticated young woman."

"She's a prostitute."

Naru grinned as she stood up and motioned for Kakashi to follow her over to the bushes. They perched down and watched through the bushes as their old friend Tohru snarled towards a man. Naru giggled as the man turned bright red and stomped his feet on the ground. Tohru had stopped screaming and was now panting softly.

Whispering, Kakashi leaned close to Naru, "Go Tohru."

Naru nodded, "She's so kickass!"

The man, Misao, finally seemed to find his balls as he straightened his back and stalked close to Tohru. "At least she's not a cripple, clinging to a tiny shred of hope that she's useful to Konoha. Face it sweet-cakes, your career disappeared with your leg."

Tohru's face crumpled as Kakashi growled before carefully running his fingers through the combinations for a water jutsu. Misao screeched as water came shooting out of the bush, soaking his clothes. Kakashi and Naru walked out, each with their hands up, ready to perform another jutsu. Misao glared before saying his curt goodbye to Tohru and disappearing with the wind.

Kakashi stepped over to Tohru and gently patted her hand. "Tohru, you okay?"

She gave him a small smile before nodding. "Everyone always whispers that behind my back."

Naru walked over, "Why?"

"I was injured years ago on a mission. Nearly lost my leg and nearly lost all capacity for chakra."

Kakashi and Naru both looked at each other, remembering Rock Lee and his chakra-less body. Kakashi frowned, and looked a little confused, "I've seen you do jutsu before."

"It's complicated," Tohru started with a frown, "my chakra reserves are damaged and my chakra coils are heavily scarred. I can use my chakra for simple things, but never anything big. I've learned to adapt, to mold and move the chakra I need to get by." She gave them both a grin, "Don't worry about me. It's been just about adapting."

"Who was that?" Naru asked curiously.

Tohru sighed, "Apparently, my ex-boyfriend." She attempted to wink at Naru, but they could tell her heart wasn't in it, "I can do better anyway." Naru laughed as Kakashi rolled his eyes. "Anyway, what are you two doing way up here?"

"We always come up here to think," Kakashi answered quickly, pointing back over to the edge of the Hokage Mountain.

The woman nodded, "I come up here too for the same thing, nothing like seeing all of Konoha while you're thinking about life." Tohru sighed deeply and exhaled through her nose, "Hey, are you two busy?"

"Not really."

Tohru grinned and pumped a fist in the air, "Let's go grab something to eat!"

* * *

The trio ended up at the Ramen House, sampling the newest chicken ramen dish. Slowly, the conversation turned towards the war.

"I'm Konoha bound." Tohru said without a hint of remorse.

"You're not disappointed?" Naru asked.

She shook her head, "When I was young and just coping with my injury I was filled with bitterness. I thought my assignment to work with the hospital's poison department was just a way for the Hokage to give me a job without assigning me to teach. He knew how much I despised teaching. Now, I know I can be useful. My poisons and antidotes are just as important as the shinobi on the front line. I've saved a lot of shinobi because of my position."

"Let's hope you can save two more. Sakumo isn't too happy with them ditching practice today." A new voice cut into the conversation. Everyone looked over to see the red headed Kushina walking into the Ramen shop. Kakashi and Naru both wore identical looks of "oh shit". Kushina laughed, "Don't worry kiddos, all is forgiven. He's a little busy with the pink haired fairy that's captured his heart."

The duo scrunched up their noses as Kushina laughed heartily, "Oh, so you two have met her? She makes my teeth hurt. Her hair reminds me of cotton candy."

Tohru laughed, even if it did seem a little forced. "He's dating?"

Kushina nodded as she slid into the chair beside Tohru. "A civilian named Momoko. She's pretty, but something about her sets off my warning senses." Kushina cut her eyes over to Kakashi and Naru, "Sakumo said I'm in charge of your training for the next few hours. I suggest you two start running laps."

Kakashi and Naru groaned before finishing up their meals and starting a quick jog. Kushina waited until they were gone before looking over at Tohru. "They say you're the best poison expert in Konoha."

Tohru smirked as she nodded, "They are correct. I'm good at what I do."

"Good enough to find the nitty-gritty on a certain poison gas that paralyzes the body, including the internal organs?"

Tohru furrowed her brows, "There has been talk about such a gas. Orochimaru was very close to developing something similar, but he stopped his research."

"He may have stopped his research, but someone else picked it up." Kushina reached into her coat pocket and brought out a vial of gas and a few scraps of paper

The dark haired girl drew in a breath as she gently picked up the items, looking intently at the sickly yellow gas. "Where did you get this?"

"Went on a mission a few days ago, Minato and I went undercover as a young married couple, and we found this in an abandoned lab. It's not complete, nor is it very potent right now, but it's a scary start to something that might be big."

"The Hokage know about this?"

Kushina scoffed, "Of course he does. He suggested you look at it." She locked eyes with Tohru. "He doesn't trust anybody else. This is very important to our futures."

Tohru pursed her lips before shoving both into her pockets. "I'll look at them tonight. If I'm lucky, I'll be able to crack it, mass produce it, and make it deadly."

The red head woman nodded with a grim smile on her face. "Good luck, with the way the war is going; we need every advantage we can get. I heard the Hokage say he may be sending Minato and the others out sooner than intended."

Tohru's eyes flashed, "Well, let's see if I can send them out with a deadly surprise." She smiled slyly at Kushina, "Think I can try it out on my cheating ex-lover?"

Kushina grinned, "A woman after my own heart."

* * *

 **(Naru POV)**

I looked over at Kakashi as we both attempted to catch our breaths on the steps of the Hokage Mountain. We'd managed to race around Konoha a few times before it had become too much. I was in-shape and all, but Konoha was huge. It was while we were taking that break, though, that we recognized the chakra of Momoko and the faint chakra of Sakumo-sensei. My eyes snapped over to Kakashi as he silently walked his way over to where we could feel the chakra coming from.

They were both standing underneath the barren branches of a tree. Momoko looked like an ugly sunflower in her brown and yellow kimono while sensei looked respectable in his dark blue and black one. Of course, I could have just been being biased.

I watched quietly as Sensei's eyes twinkled before he leaned down and kissed Momoko on the lips. Kakashi scoffed in annoyance. I growled. She was such a vile person. I was so rooting for her to be different, up until when I heard her in the marketplace.

"Come Naru, she'll get what's coming to her."

I nodded and followed after her. Hell yeah she would. I was about to start 'Operation Fuck a Bitch Up.'

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

After hearing what Momoko said at the market today and seeing Momoko with Dad, I knew I had to talk to him. I waited until Naru went to sleep before sneaking downstairs to see him reading a scroll at the kitchen table.

He looked up with a frown on his face. "Kakashi? Everything okay?"

I nodded as I walked over and sat across from him. "I don't like Momoko."

Dad sighed as he ran a hand through his hair. "Son, have you given her a chance yet?"

"Yes."

"Okay, tell me why you don't like her?"

I attempted to rattle off my reasons, even mentioning that she'd said some horrible stuff about Naru and me, but I couldn't tell him. He looked so sad whenever I said I didn't like her. "Kakashi, give her a chance. She's something special. Now, head up to bed. We'll talk more in the morning."

I sighed. He wasn't in love with her, I could tell, but he felt something for her. It's in that moment when I realized that I we would have to show him exactly how horrible of a person Momoko was. He'd have to see it himself if he was ever going to believe it.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

 _Sunlight, bright and beautiful, shining through a floral patterned curtain was the first thing Kakashi noticed as he shook himself awake. With squinted eyes and a sleep riddled mind, all he could focus on was the little blue flowers dotting the white curtains that seem to shimmer ever so slightly in the sun's rays. It's peaceful, a peace he hasn't felt in a long time, but there's something off about the scene. In fact, in his sleep muddled haze, all he can think about is how the sunlight was so bright and beautiful that it looked artificial. He suddenly felt the need to reach out and see if he could shake the rays away._

 _He doesn't, though, and instead lets his body relax back into sleep. Yes, all he needed was a few more minutes of sleep and then he'll be ready to take on the world and all it offers, or so he told himself. In reality he has no intention of leaving the bed until he figured out why he suddenly has floral curtains. Even that question is ignored for just a few more minutes of sleep. He'll figure it out later. Unfortunately just as his eyelids close together a sudden knock on his door jolted him back to the land of consciousness._

 _A surprisingly feminine voice shrieked loudly from the other side of the door. "Get up Kakashi! Or I'm sending your brothers in there to wake you up!"_

 _This does nothing but cause the sliver haired ninja even more confusion. Last time he checked he was an only child. Maybe he somehow entered the wrong house last night after that late night training session with his sensei? Kakashi shook his head at the very thought, Naru was the absentminded one, there was no way he walked into someone else's house. Plus, he distinctly remembered hearing his name being used by the woman, whoever she was._

 _Shaking his head again, Kakashi simply pulled a pillow over his head and closed his eyes again, he was dreaming, he had to be. Letting his body fully relax, Kakashi slipped right back to the edge of sleep with a small smile lingering on his lips. He rather enjoyed silly dreams like this, or at least they were tons better than the nightmares he was so used to having. Maybe next time he'll dream about having a dinosaur for a pet or finding the perfect bowl of miso soup. Yeah, those nice dreams would be such great changes from his normal dreams._

" _Hatake Kakashi! Wake up now!"_

 _This time Kakashi jolted awake with enough force to smack his head on the headboard. Stifling his groan of pain, he clutched at his head and bit back a string of foul curses._

 _Another barrage of knocks landed on the door before the banshee on the other side screeched again. "That's it Kakashi! Boys, go wake him up!"_

 _Suddenly, the door was slammed open, shaking the room as it connected with the solid oak walls. Kakashi tried to move, the hairs on the back of his neck are standing up and he knows something evil is coming through that open door, but his limbs suddenly feel like they're jello and he can't quite gather his chakra as quickly as he needed to._

 _So he waits with abated breath as footsteps, three sets if he's hearing them right, come closer to the door before the figures enter into the room. Three figures, looking no more than five or six-years-old, stand before him wearing matching maniacal grins. It was not their grins, though, that cause Kakashi's heart to palpitate within his chest. No, it was the matching hot pink hair atop their heads that caused Kakashi to close his eyes and practically shriek in terror._

*Bang*

"Kakashi!? What's going on?"

Groggily, Kakashi opened his eyes to discover that there was a bloated moon hanging low in the sky outside of his beautiful, curtainless window. A dream, it was all just a dream. Taking a deep breath and rubbing a hand across his eyes, Kakashi looked up to see Naru worriedly standing beside his bed in her oversized orange nightshirt.

"It's nothing Naru."

She didn't look convinced. Her large blue eyes narrowed suddenly as she placed her hands on her hips and frowned at him. "Sure didn't sound like 'nothing'. You were screaming like a girl."

"Was not."

Naru snorted as she rolled her eyes and mumbled something underneath her breath about males acting macho. "Fine, I'll pretend like I didn't hear you screaming like a girl, but you were obviously having a nightmare." Softened cobalt blue eyes met charcoal grey as Naru gently placed a hand on Kakashi's shoulder, remembering all too well the nightmares that used to plague him. "You know you can tell me anything, right? I am your friend."

Kakashi smiled at her before shrugging her hand off. "Don't worry; it wasn't that kind of dream. It was just creepy."

"Oh." Naru fell silent as she uncomfortably shifted from one foot to the other. A part of her really, really wanted to know what his dream was about, but Kakashi's dreams were still taboo subjects. Sometimes he was entirely too caught up in not seeming weak in front of others. "Like, creepy, creepy?"

Kakashi rolled his eyes as he nodded his head, shivering just slightly as he remembered the last images of his dream. "Yeah, like pink hair on boys creepy."

Naru shivered as she pictured it and she knew exactly why Kakashi was having such strange dreams. It had been exactly three weeks since they had begun 'Operation Fuck a Bitch Up', as Naru so helpfully called it.

Three weeks of sneaking into Momoko's apartment, swapping her shampoo and conditioner out for paint and honey. Three weeks of hiding all of her left shoes. Three weeks of henging themselves into different children and putting frogs down the back of her clothes while she wasn't paying attention. Three weeks of simply terrorizing the woman.

Unfortunately, their efforts seemed to be in vain. Momoko only smiled and laughed at each new occurrence. They supposed that she suspected something, but she never called them out on it, or even suggested to Sakumo that they were doing something. Nor had she done anything to show Sakumo that she was anything but the perfect, happiest civilian girl in all of Konoha. All in all, their operation had been disappointing and unfulfilling.

"Oi! Kakashi, Naru, come down here!"

Blinking in confusion, both ran down the stairs to see Sakumo standing at the door with Momoko on his arm. The two glared at the woman, and as usual, she glared back.

"Momoko has had a brilliant idea. She's going to cook lunch for us today! You two should help her. It'll be a great bonding experience."

Kakashi's left eye may have twitched just a tiny bit at the thought of having to help the pink haired woman cook. Naru, on the other hand, smiled sweetly before mentally giving the other woman an evil grin. Momoko was on their turf now.

* * *

 **(Kakashi POV)**

Naru was scheming and a devious Naru was my favorite kind of Naru.

Those unfamiliar with Naru's ways do not comprehend the absolute joy that pierces my heart every time she gets that devious glint in her eyes. The same spark of intelligence and pure evil that stops people in their tracks and seduces them closer all in the same glance.

It would only look like she was reading a cook book and attempting to ignore Momoko's laughter from the next room. I know better though. She hadn't flipped a page in over thirty minutes and though her eyes gave off the appearance of reading, they were unfocused and glossy.

Whatever she was planning must be big for her to be so inattentive to her surroundings.

"You got a plan?"

Naru grinned as she snapped the book shut. "I have the plan of a lifetime. You said Sensei won't believe that she's evil until he sees it, well, we're going to show him her true colors." She jumped down from the counter she was sitting on and moved over to the lower cabinet to pull out the salt. "Give me the sugar container."

I did. We kept our sugar in a large plastic container. It was something my mother used to do and Dad never stopped. I grinned as Naru poured the sugar into another bowl before pouring salt into the sugar container. Taking after Naru's example, I reached for the flour and exchanged it for the sugar in the bowl. We were going to make Momoko's lunch the lunch hour from hell.

We could hear Dad and Momoko walking towards the kitchen, so we quickly hid everything and tried to look innocent. Not that that was hard, of course.

Dad walked in, leading Momoko, he stopped and showed her the kitchen. "The kids will help you. Use anything you need." He turned to us and smiled. "Kushina and Minato have been invited as well. I'm going to get them after I check in with the Hokage. We have a meeting today."

Momoko kissed his cheek and saw him out. She held her smile until he was out of the gate with Aki at his heels before turning back to us. Her smile dropped and her temper flared.

"I know what you two have been doing, but you're not going to discourage me from getting what I want. Brats."

Naru smirked, "Bring it, Momo."

The battle lines were drawn. Momoko snatched the cookbook from the counter and flipped it roughly. She settled on a simply cake for desert, a salad for an appetizer, and tempura-battered vegetables for the main dish. She glared at us before starting to heat some oil on the stove.

She smirked over to Naru, "You know, Naru, all that ramen is going straight to your thighs."

Apparently, she was expecting Naru to be phased, but Naru snorted. "Well, you've got a big butt."

I stifled my laughter as Momoko reddened in anger and snatched the container labeled 'flour' from the cabinet. She didn't notice the difference as she poured some into a clean bowl and tossed the cucumbers and broccoli in there. She shifted the vegetables in the 'flour' with a frown on her face. It simply wasn't coating the broccoli like it should.

"Having problems, Momo?" Naru asked from the kitchen table.

Momoko ignored her and simply tossed a handful of vegetables and 'flour' into the boiling oil. Unfortunately, whenever sugar gets hot, it caramelizes. Obviously not what she needed for tempura-battered vegetables. The vegetables burned black as Naru and I giggled.

The pink haired woman picked the pan of ruined dinner up and tossed it, still cooking, into the sink. It sizzled slightly before she turned around, grabbed the sugar, and tossed it in our direction. We scrambled to get out of range. Not that we were scared of her. She's a civilian; her aim was off so all she accomplished was getting sugar everywhere.

"That was done on purpose." She glared at us. "You two may never be mentally stable enough to find spouses, but I want Sakumo. I will get him too."

I grinned as I kicked at the sugar coating the floor, ignoring her jabs. She'd been doing that all night, especially towards Naru. "Is that a challenge? We do love a challenge, don't we, Naru?"

Naru cackled. Momoko huffed before quickly finding the real flour and restarting a new pan of oil. It was going to be a long evening.

* * *

By the time Dad and Sensei and Kushina got to the house, Momoko had finished some of her lunch. The salad was easy to do for her. Chopped vegetables covered in vinegar and olive oil. Of course, Naru and I added some salt when she wasn't looking. It stuck perfectly to the dressing.

She'd even managed to get her tempura-battered vegetables and rice nearly finished. Despite the fact that Naru and I drained the water out of the rice, letting it harden as it cooked. Last time I touched it, the rice had the consistency of a rock. At least her tempura-battered vegetables were turning out okay.

The big thing, though, was the cake. It was Naru's masterpiece. We let Momoko think she'd won after Dad and the others arrived. We silently went up to Naru's room and let her finish the meal. Unfortunately for her, we were upstairs making her cake. Using a balloon, a book, and some cake icing, we made a replica of her cake in the kitchen. It was just as loopy and lumpy as the one downstairs, but when ours was cut into; the balloon would explode, throwing icing and confetti everywhere.

We waited until it was time for lunch before making a clone. While we were in the living room, which had been switched up to house a larger dining area, the clone would switch out the cakes. It was the perfect plan.

* * *

 **(Narrator POV)**

Their plan was perfect. As the salad was brought out, Kakashi and Naru watched as the adults around them made horrible faces at such a salt-heavy meal. Even Sakumo, who was trying to be as polite as possible, was discreetly moving the food around his plate. Even he couldn't bear to eat it. Naru grinned as she watched Momoko apologize for the saltiness.

"There must be too much vinegar in there." She attempted to explain before scurrying back off into the kitchen to fetch the next dish.

Kushina coughed as she tried to chug down some water. "Lord, I'm from Whirlpool and even we don't eat dishes as salty as that."

Naru snickered even as Sakumo narrowed his eyes at them. "Did you two do anything?"

The two Chunin didn't have a chance to answer his question because the second dish was brought out. The tempura actually turned out okay, but the rice was undercooked and hard. Momoko wilted and grew steadily angrier with each passing person poking at their rice.

She glared at Naru and Kakashi even as she smiled for the table, "Well, I'm not used to cooking such things. I know the cake is good though. I'll grab it for you!"

Naru twitched in her seat as the cake was brought out. Momoko grinned as she took out a knife and began to cut the cake. It exploded everywhere, covering her and the table in chocolate icing. The table laughed, knowing it was probably the pranksters at the table. Sakumo looked a little disappointed, but he smiled goodheartedly as he told them to go help Momoko clean up in the kitchen.

The duo followed her, waiting for the dam to break. She was twitching by the time the door closed on the living room. Naru giggled and Momoko's temper exploded.

"You god-forsaken brats! I have had it up to here with you!" She ignored the startled voices of the adults as she rounded on Naru. "You're such a sniffling little menace. I heard about you, heard all about your time in captivity. You deserved everything you got in Iwa!"

Kakashi rounded on her quickly, snarling as Naru's eyes widened in disbelief. Momoko rounded on Kakashi. "And you, you need a good slap across the face." She raised her hand, intent on slapping Kakashi, but a hand stopped her. She snatched her head up to stare into the burning eyes of the White Fang of Konoha.

"Nobody touches my kid."

"I.."

Another hand appeared on her other arm, Minato gripped her firmly. "Nobody talks about my kid either."

"Let me…"

A third hand appeared. Kushina gripped her shoulder, completely immobilizing her. "He's right. You made a huge mistake talking about our Naru like that."

Momoko screeched in terror as the three shinobi took her outside and tossed her into the yard. Aki stood on the porch and growled happily. The pink haired shinobi shouted in frustration before fleeing from the yard.

Naru and Kakashi celebrated in the kitchen, until they saw Sakumo's disappointed face. Ashamed, they both settled down and started cleaning up the mess in the kitchen and living room. Sakumo looked so confused as he headed upstairs.

* * *

Sakumo stayed in his room for two days before he snuck out his bedroom window and headed into the heart of Konoha. It didn't take very long for him to reach the hospital, and an even shorter amount of time for him to find Tohru's office.

He knocked on the door, only to hear a feminine cough behind him. Turning, he grinned as he saw Tohru standing there in her lab coat.

"What's up soldier?"

Sakumo laughed lightly as he stepped aside to let Tohru open the door. "I've had a rough few days."

"Really?" Tohru asked as she walked in and placed her coat on the back of her chair. "Me too. This is the first time I've seen sunlight in days, but enough about me, what's wrong in your neck of the woods?"

Sheepishly, Sakumo sat down, "My girlfriend was a horrible, lying person."

"Ugh," Tohru groaned, "I found out my boyfriend was cheating on me." She smiled over the top of the papers on her desk at Sakumo as he leaned over the desk. "We certainly know how to pick our partners."

Sakumo agreed before taking a deep breath and locking eyes with Tohru. "My eyes have been opened though. Opened to what I really want."

"What is that?" Tohru asked shyly.

"Something I've wanted for a long time, something that's always been just out of reach or unavailable to me."

Tohru stood and swallowed, "Oh? What is that 'something'?"

Sakumo leaned forward again, closer to her. His stomach was doing those weird little flipping motions again. The same flipping motions it did the first time he walked her home. Tohru walked out from behind her desk, maneuvering him to sit against the desk instead of leaning over it. She was standing very close to him, her smaller body radiating the heat that Momoko's never radiated. His hand acted on its own and reached for her chin and stroked it gently as her breath hitched.

His gaze shifted to her lips and he couldn't help but wonder if she would let him kiss her. He had kissed her before and had dreamed of kissing her again. She certainly enjoyed it the first time too. He leaned forward and once he felt no hesitation, he captured her lips with his own.

The kiss was similar to the first one they had, powerful and demanding with just a touch of uncertainty. Tohru was a little wiser, more prepared this time, but her knees still felt weak and heat still raced up her spine as Sakumo's lips molded against hers. She kissed back as she made the move to wrap her arms around his neck. Spurred on, he pulled her against his chest, settling his hands on her hips.

Tohru pushed his body further onto her desk before straddling him. Knees on either side of his thighs, Tohru shifted until one of his hands moved to caress her back. The other moved from her hip and tossed her hair out of the way as he began gently kissing his way down her throat. It had been so long since the last time he kissed a woman that his body yearned for her touch.

Tohru finally came back into her senses as Sakumo's hand caressed down her backside to clutch at the swell of her thighs. Sakumo's warm mouth along her neck felt so good and nothing would feel better than to feel that mouth all over her, but there was a lot wrong with their situation.

"Wait." She groaned out.

"No," Sakumo said as he continued his way down her neck. "Every time I wait I lose a chance to have you."

Tohru shivered as he nipped at her collarbone, but succeeded in pushing his head away. Grinning as she pinched his cheek, Tohru forced him to look at her. "We both just got out of relationships and we're both high strung and disappointed. I like you, Sakumo, I do. I just don't trust this desperation right now; let's give it a few days."

Frowning, Sakumo agreed. He nudged her back to her feet and leaned to steal another kiss. Grinning as Tohru pressed back against him just as hard. "I can do a few days."

He made an effort to step away from Tohru, who looked to be having second thoughts. The look on her face stayed until Sakumo got to the door. Groaning in frustration, Tohru stalked towards Sakumo. "Oh fuck it."

She grabbed his hand and gave him a wink before pushing him against the door. Clutching his face between her hands, Tohru nipped along Sakumo's bottom lip just to hear him groan. Smirking she pulled away. "We're shinobi in the middle of a stupid war. Tomorrow is not promised. We were stupid to wait before."

Sakumo grinned as he picked Tohru up and walked over to place her on the desk. "Make up for lost time?"

She grinned, blue eyes sparkling, as she pulled him closer.

* * *

As it turned out, few days were all they had. Tohru was happy for the first time in a long time. It showed in her work. She had worked non-stop on finding the secret to the poison gas Kushina gave her. She cracked it within the week. After making sure it could be mass-produced, the Hokage called all of his shinobi on leave into his office.

They were all going back to war.

* * *

 **Notes of the uploader** : This is the last chapter known to be written by the Author. I do not think I will continue this story by myself, and even if I do, it would be in French and not in English. Writing is not an easy process and even harder when it is not in your native language. Though, the odds that I continue this story are closer of 0% than 1% so to speak. Time and will are two important things when you plan such a big project.


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